2024-01-28 21:48:37
Tokyo talks about the “possibility” of restarting the Japanese probe on the moon
The Japanese Space Agency (JAXA) announced today (Monday) that it had stopped the power supply to its “SLIM” probe, less than three hours after its historic landing on the moon on Saturday, in order to save energy in its batteries for a possible restart.
According to Agence France-Presse, the Japanese agency indicated that there is a “possibility” to restart the Japanese “Slim” unit, which faced a problem with the solar panels.
The Japanese Space Agency said: “According to telemetry data, the Slim solar cells are directed towards the west. “If sunlight hits the moon from the west in the future, we believe it is possible to produce energy, and we are currently preparing to restart.”
The agency said on social media: “We were able to complete the transfer of technical data and images obtained during the landing and on the surface of the moon before the power outage.”
On Saturday, Japan became the fifth country in the world to successfully carry out a landing on the moon.
After an amazing descent that lasted twenty minutes, the Japanese Space Agency announced that the “SLIM” module, which stands for “Intelligent Lunar Landing Vehicle,” landed at 00:20 Saturday morning (15:20 GMT Friday). ) Communication was established with it, but due to the inability of the solar panels to work, the probe, nicknamed “Moon Sniper” for its ability to land accurately, will only receive electricity “for hours,” according to what Hitoshi Kuninaka, a JAXA official, warned.
Kuninaka said that the panels may restart when the angle of the sun changes, while the team works to maximize the scientific results of the mission by transmitting the data obtained to Earth.
“SLIM” is one of many missions to the moon recently launched by countries and private companies, but so far, only the United States, the Soviet Union, China, and finally India have succeeded in landing on the moon’s surface.
“Partnership in the Universe”
NASA head Bill Nelson extended “congratulations to Japan, which has become the fifth country in history to successfully land on the moon,” adding: “We highly value our partnership in the field of exploring the universe and our continued cooperation.”
JAXA hopes to analyze the data obtained during the moon landing to determine whether the vehicle achieved its goal by landing 100 meters from its target.
The “Slim” spacecraft landed in a small crater with a diameter of less than 300 meters, called “Shioli,” where it was scheduled to conduct analyzes on the surface.
The Japanese Space Agency said that the two miniature vehicles carried by the “Slim” probe were launched normally, including a spherical probe called “SORA-Q”, which is barely larger than a tennis ball, and can adjust its shape to move on the lunar soil. It was developed by JAXA in partnership with Japanese toy giant Takara Tomy.
Jonathan McDowell, an astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, said that although the accuracy of the moon landing must be confirmed, “I think the mission was a great success.”
He explained to Agence France-Presse that several problems may be the cause of the problem with the solar panels. “There could be a loose cable, a cable that’s connected incorrectly, or the lander could be in reverse and unable to see the sun for some reason,” McDowell said.
Technological challenge
More than 50 years after man’s first steps on the moon, an achievement achieved by the Americans in 1969, countries raced to it again. In addition to the United States and China, Russia also dreams of restoring the glories of the Soviet Union in the field of space, by uniting efforts in particular with China and India, which made the first landing on the moon last summer.
The first two Japanese attempts in this field failed. In 2022, Tokyo sought to land the “Omotenashi” (Hospitality in Japanese) vehicle on board the “Artemis 1” mission of the US Space Agency (NASA), but contact with the vehicle was lost due to a defect in its batteries after it was thrown into space.
In April 2023, the vehicle of the Japanese start-up company “Ispace” crashed on the surface of the moon, after it failed in the smooth landing phase.
Reaching the moon remains a major technological challenge even for major space powers. This month, a lunar lander belonging to an American company was lost, which failed in its mission after suffering a fuel leak, and may have disintegrated upon entering the Earth’s atmosphere, according to what was announced by the startup company Astrobotic, which designed it.
Hours later, the US Space Agency (NASA) announced that it had delayed the next two missions of its major program to return to the moon “Artemis” by about a year.
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