Japan’s space agency ends Moon probe operation
- Despite landing successfully, the spacecraft’s wonky angle hindered solar panel function, leading to communication loss
Japan’s space agency said on Monday it had ended its Moon lander operation after losing communication with the uncrewed spaceship last week.
The Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), dubbed the “Moon Sniper” for its landing precision, touched down eight months ago – making Japan only the fifth nation to achieve a soft lunar landing.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) wrote on X there was no response from the SLIM after trying to communicate last week following three frigid lunar nights or six cold weeks.
“We judged that there was no prospect of restoring communication with SLIM, and at around 22:40 on August 23, we sent a command to stop the SLIM activity,” JAXA said, nearly a year after launching the operation.
“SLIM continued to transmit information on its status and the surrounding environment for a much longer period than expected.”
“At the time of launch, no one imagined that the operation would continue this long,” it said.