Successful start: Japan sends probe to the moon Freddie Mercury’s piano auctioned for two million euros

Japan has sent a small probe to the moon. A Japanese H2A launcher successfully lifted off from Japan’s Tanegashima spaceport in the southwest of the island on Thursday morning (local time) in clear weather.

In addition to the lunar lander SLIM, there was also an X-ray telescope called XRISM on board, intended to investigate the origin of the universe. XRISM successfully separated from the launch vehicle about 14 minutes and nine seconds and SLIM about 47 minutes and 33 seconds after launch, Japan’s Jaxa space agency announced.

The rocket launch was previously postponed several times due to bad weather conditions. Should Japan succeed with SLIM, the high-tech country would become the fifth country to achieve a soft landing on the moon, after the former Soviet Union, the US, China and India. India was only able to do this a few days ago after a Russian space probe crashed into the moon.

Orbiting the moon in three to four months

The lunar lander developed by Jaxa is intended to test technologies for future precise landings on the lunar surface. SLIM will enter lunar orbit about three to four months after launch and attempt to reach the lunar surface within four to six months.

The data Japan collects on the moon will be used as part of the US-led Artemis project. The goal of this project is to return humans to the moon by 2025 and to advance lunar exploration. The broader goal is human exploration of Mars.

Collaboration with NASA and Esa

Japan is also collaborating with the US space agency NASA and the European space agency ESA on the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM). XRISM is designed to observe the hot gas plasma wind that blows through galaxies in the Universe. It is hoped that this will provide information about the composition and development of celestial bodies.

It was the first launch of a larger Japanese-designed launch vehicle since a next-generation H3 rocket failed in March this year. The successor to the reliable H2 launcher was Japan’s first major launch launch development in about 30 years. Japan intends to establish itself firmly in the lucrative and increasingly competitive global satellite launch industry. The H3 rocket program is also seen as important to Japan’s participation in space development, including the US-led Artemis program. (sda/dpa)