Japan's SLIM lunar craft successful in sending data to Earth
What's the story
Japan's Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) has sent back images and other data to Earth, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has announced. To recall, it made a successful touchdown on the lunar surface this Saturday. However, the mission has faced a temporary setback due to issues with the spacecraft's solar cells, causing it to shut down for now.
Details
Precision landing verification
JAXA is in the process of confirming if SLIM's precision landing occurred within 100 meters of its target, which could take up to a month to determine. To note, a conventional landing might miss the target by 10km or even more. Meanwhile, the solar cell problems have impacted the lander's power generation capabilities, leading to a planned shutdown.
What Next?
Temporary shutdown amid power generation struggles
To conserve SLIM's mission, JAXA has decided to temporarily halt its operations while they work on resolving the solar cell issues. The agency aims to restart the lunar lander once a solution is found. The solar cells were supposed to serve as SLIM's power source post-landing and were designed to face upwards to collect sunlight. However, due to improper orientation, they ended up facing west, and the cells became unable to generate power for the spacecraft.
Achievement
Japan has joined an elite club
Thanks to the successful SLIM mission, Japan has become the fifth country to land a spacecraft on the Moon. The US, the former Soviet Union, India, and China achieved this feat earlier. If Japan's precision landing is indeed successful, then it will get an advantage in its search for water sources on the satellite.