Read The Diplomat, get to know Asia-Pacific
After technical setbacks, Japan re-established communication with the sleeping spacecraft and the lunar project was back on track.
This image, released via JAXA, shows SLIM on the lunar surface after it landed upside down.
Landing on the moon is no easy feat. The success of Japan’s first lunar probe has been fraught with tension. The unmanned rover, known as Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), landed upside down on the surface of the moon and lost power supply as a result. However, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has now confirmed that SLIM is functioning again, reigniting the mission to discover the origin of the moon. The cameras have started taking photos again and JAXA believes the solar panels have also begun working.
Japan’s mission to explore the moon has been more than two decades in the making. It aims to search for a mineral called olivine and compare it with the same mineral on Earth. But the highly anticipated project has not been smooth sailing. Just 50 meters above the lunar surface, one of the two engines lost power, reducing thrust by half. JAXA project manager Sakai Shinichiro praised the team for managing to land the spacecraft with only one engine. In fact, JAXA says it broke the world record for its unusually accurate landing, with an error margin of just 55 meters from the target site.
Still, the engine’s asymmetrical thrust at the dock caused SLIM to land upside down when it reached the lunar surface on Jan. 19. Sakai said JAXA was investigating the cause of the engine problem.
The initial euphoria over SLIM’s comfortable landing on the Moon lasted for several hours, after which the spacecraft could not transfer from battery to solar power.
Images taken by two small robots launched before landing showed the solar panels in an awkward position, facing the desired direction and toward the sun. The spacecraft had several hours of battery-powered electrical power on board, but shut down with the remaining 12%. in the hope that they will be able to resume their mission. JAXA pinned its hopes on how the solar panels would work when sunlight replaced the steering.
On that day, more than a week after landing, JAXA’s hopes were dashed when sunlight reached the solar cells, prompting the spacecraft to get underway and resume operations.
The team will want to act temporarily to collect data, as the probe will only have a few days before the temperature on the moon’s surface reaches 250 degrees Fahrenheit and destroys the spacecraft.
The European Union Space Agency also faced a similar setback in 2014 when its spacecraft landed on a cliff above a comet and was unable to access its solar arrays. Fortunately, as the comet approached the Sun, the solar force capacity was restored. SLIM was designed with this precedent in mind. But there are fears that SLIM’s solar panels may have broken on landing.
SLIM is the result of high-tech collaborations with Mitsubishi, Ritsumeikan University’s Earth and Space Exploration Research Center, Aizu University, which specializes in technology, and Japanese toy company Takara Tomy. JAXA says the exact landing is a significant technological advance in lunar exploration and was made imaginable by two robots at SLIM equipped with newly evolved cameras and symbol sensors, which performed automated symbol-based navigation without the help of humans. JAXA says Japan has competitive merit in the exact landing, which will now be a mandatory strategy on any lunar mission.
Japan has been largely absent from the foreign race to explore the moon. It is now the fifth country to land a spacecraft on the moon, after the United States, Russia, China and India. Japan’s government-funded lunar exploration is facing a stiff festival from personal company iSpace, which tried unsuccessfully to land on the moon last year.
Understand Asia-Pacific’s biggest issues with a subscription to The Diplomat.
Landing on the Moon is no easy task. The good fortune of Japan’s first lunar probe has been a source of tension. The unmanned rover, known as the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), landed upside down on the moon’s surface and lost its power supply. However, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has shown that SLIM is working again, reviving the project to detect the origin of the Moon. Cameras have returned to taking pictures, and JAXA believes the solar panels have worked as well.
Japan’s quest to explore the moon lasted more than two decades. Its purpose is to look for a mineral called olivine and compare it to the same mineral discovered on Earth. But this long-awaited assignment didn’t go well. Just 50 meters above the lunar surface, one of the two engines lost power, reducing thrust by half. JAXA’s task manager, Sakai Shinichiro, congratulated the team for effectively landing the spacecraft with a single engine. In fact, JAXA claims to have broken the world record for its unusually precise landing. with a margin of error of only 55 meters from the target site.
Still, the engine’s asymmetrical thrust at the dock caused SLIM to land upside down when it reached the lunar surface on Jan. 19. Sakai said JAXA was investigating the cause of the engine problem.
The initial euphoria over SLIM’s comfortable landing on the Moon lasted for several hours, after which the spacecraft could not transfer from battery to solar power.
Images taken by two small robots launched before landing showed the solar panels in an awkward position, facing the desired direction and toward the sun. The spacecraft had several hours of battery-powered electrical power on board, but shut down with the remaining 12%. in the hope that they will be able to resume their mission. JAXA pinned its hopes on how the solar panels would work when sunlight replaced the steering.
On that day, more than a week after landing, JAXA’s hopes were dashed when sunlight reached the solar cells, prompting the spacecraft to get underway and resume operations.
The team will want to act temporarily to collect data, since the probe will only have a few days before the temperature on the moon’s surface reaches 250 degrees Fahrenheit and destroys the spacecraft.
The European Union Space Agency also faced a similar setback in 2014 when its spacecraft landed on a cliff above a comet and was unable to access its solar arrays. Fortunately, as the comet approached the Sun, the solar force capacity was restored. SLIM was designed with this precedent in mind. But there are fears that SLIM’s solar panels may have broken on landing.
SLIM is the result of high-tech collaborations with Mitsubishi, Ritsumeikan University’s Earth and Space Exploration Research Center, Aizu University, which specializes in technology, and Japanese toy company Takara Tomy. JAXA says the exact landing is a significant technological advance in lunar exploration and was made imaginable by two robots at SLIM equipped with newly evolved cameras and symbol sensors, which performed automated symbol-based navigation without the help of humans. JAXA says Japan has competitive merit in the exact landing, which will now be a mandatory strategy on any lunar mission.
Japan has been largely absent from the international race to explore the moon. It has now become the fifth country to land a spacecraft on the moon following after the United States, Russia, China, and India. Japan’s government-funded lunar exploration is facing fierce competition from private venture firm iSpace, which attempted to land on the moon unsuccessfully last year.
Landing on the moon is no easy feat. The success of Japan’s first lunar probe has been fraught with tension. The unmanned rover, known as Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), landed upside down on the surface of the moon and lost power supply as a result. However, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has now confirmed that SLIM is functioning again, reigniting the mission to discover the origin of the moon. The cameras have started taking photos again and JAXA believes the solar panels have also begun working.
Japan’s mission to explore the moon lasted more than two decades. Its purpose is to search for a mineral called olivine and compare it with the same mineral discovered on Earth. But this long-awaited assignment did not go well. Just 50 meters above the lunar surface, one of the two engines lost power, reducing thrust by half. JAXA Task Director Sakai Shinichiro congratulated the team for effectively landing the single-engine spacecraft. In fact, JAXA claims to have broken the world record for its unusually precise landing. with a margin of error of only 55 meters from the target site.
Thisanka Siripala is an Australian-Sri Lankan multi-platform journalist based in Tokyo.