Japan Becomes Fifth Nation to Land on the Moon
On January 19th 2024, JAXA’s Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) successfully touched down on the surface of the Moon. This makes Japan the fifth nation in history to conduct a successful soft landing on the surface of the Moon, following Russia, the United States, China, and India. 135 days after launching alongside the XRISM X-Ray Space Telescope, SLIM has demonstrated a new method for landing on the surface of the Moon. However, unexpected power problems have occurred, and it will take further time to confirm if the lander’s precision goals were met.
Published by Space Scout on 01/19/2024
