Japanese aerospace research agency JAXA announced that it plans to land the robotic spacecraft SLIM on the Moon on January 19, 2024. This was stated in an official message Web site organizations.
“SLIM’s goal remains to reach the landing point with an accuracy of less than 100 meters,” JAXA said.
The SLIM complex also includes two mini probes; Both of these will be placed on the lunar surface after landing. They will photograph the landing site, which will help the mission team monitor the mothership’s status and provide “an independent system of direct communication with Earth.”
If all goes as planned, SLIM will enter lunar orbit on December 25 and spend the remaining time preparing for the Moon landing attempt. If successful, Japan will be the fifth country to land a spacecraft on the Moon, after the USSR, the USA, China and India.
This is not Japan’s first attempt to send a spacecraft to the Moon. In early 2023, private Japanese space company Ispace attempted to land a module called Hakuto-R on the Moon but crashed during landing.
Previously Japan started SLIM, which landed on the Moon, and XRISM, the X-ray telescope using the H2A launch vehicle.
Source: Gazeta
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