Japan’s Moon lander, known as the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), has overcome initial setbacks related to its solar batteries, marking a successful turnaround in its operations. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) declared the restoration of communication on X (formerly Twitter), signifying the resumption of scientific observations.
JAXA enthusiastically announced, “Communication with SLIM was successfully established last night, and operations resumed! Science observations were immediately started with the MBC, and we obtained first light for the 10-band observation. This figure shows the ‘toy poodle’ observed in the multi-band observation.” In this context, MBC refers to the lander’s multi-band spectroscopic camera. Alongside this announcement, JAXA shared an image captured by SLIM, showcasing a rock resembling a “toy poodle” near the lunar lander, providing a glimpse into the lunar surface.
The revival of SLIM’s operations follows a period of interruption caused by challenges related to its solar batteries. The setback led to a temporary suspension of power generation. Notably, on January 20, Japan achieved a soft lunar landing, marking it as the fifth nation to accomplish this feat. Japan joined the esteemed ranks of the United States, the Soviet Union, China, and India in achieving a successful lunar landing. The precision of SLIM’s landing was particularly noteworthy, as it landed within 100 meters of its target and only 55 meters away.
Despite the initial success, SLIM faced challenges that prompted the decision to temporarily power it off, a decision made merely three hours after its historic landing, according to reports from AFP. The recent announcement of the successful restoration of communication and the resumption of operations represents a positive turn of events for Japan’s lunar exploration mission.
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