Japan’s ‘Moon Sniper’ craft makes a successful ‘soft landing’ on the lunar surface

Japan’s ‘Moon Sniper’ craft achieved a successful ‘soft landing’ on the lunar surface on January 19, marking a significant milestone for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). This accomplishment makes Japan the fifth nation globally, after the United States, Russia, China, and India, to achieve a lunar landing. The mission utilized the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), representing a notable success for JAXA following two previous lunar mission failures and rocket setbacks.

The ‘Moon Sniper’ craft aimed for a ‘pinpoint’ landing on the Moon, a challenging task due to the Moon’s stronger gravity compared to an asteroid where Japan had previously accomplished a similar landing. The chosen landing site for this mission was a lunar crater where the lunar mantle, the inner layer beneath the crust, is believed to be accessible from the surface.

While the soft landing was successful, initial silence from JAXA and the absence of an immediate statement fueled speculation that the spacecraft might have crashed. However, JAXA later confirmed the landing more than an hour after the event, assuring that communication had been established since landing.

Despite the success of the landing, JAXA reported that the solar cells on the SLIM were not generating sufficient power. The agency prioritized data acquisition from the lunar surface, given this limitation. JAXA officials, including Hitoshi Kuninaka, noted that the SLIM is currently operating with on-board batteries, storing acquired data within the spacecraft. Efforts are underway to maximize scientific results by transmitting this data back to Earth once the power constraints are addressed.