An artist’s rendition of the SLIM lunar lander on the moon’s floor.
Japan Aerospace Exploration Company
Japan staked a declare as a nationwide area energy on Friday, as its SLIM spacecraft landed on the moon.
The nation’s SLIM lander launched in September and touched down on the lunar floor round 10:20 a.m. ET, based on the Japan Aerospace Exploration Company, or JAXA. Engineers had been checking the standing of the spacecraft shortly after its touchdown.
The feat makes Japan the fifth nation to land on the moon, following Russia (then the Soviet Union), the U.S., China and India. Final yr, India joined the listing of moon landings with its Chandrayaan-3 mission.
Japan’s SLIM, which stands for “Smart Lander for Investigating Moon,” is a cargo analysis mission. It carries quite a lot of scientific payloads, together with an evaluation digicam and a pair of lunar rovers.
The SLIM lunar lander earlier than launch.
Japan Aerospace Exploration Company
