Tokyo: After Chandrayaan-3's success, Japan's space agency is set to launch a lander and a X-ray mission on the lunar surface on Monday.
The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) SLIM (Smart Lander for Investigating Moon) aims to achieve a lightweight probe system on a small scale and use the pinpoint landing technology necessary for future lunar probes.
If successful, Japan will become just the fifth country to successfully soft-land on the moon, after Russia, US, China and India.
The mission will also place the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) in a satellite that will help scientists observe plasma in stars and galaxies.
The mission, originally scheduled to take off on Saturday, was postponed to Monday due to bad weather. It will now launch to the Moon on JAXA's H2-A rocket from Yoshinobu Launch Complex at the JAXA Tanegashima Space Center.
“The launch of the H-IIA Rocket No. 47 carrying the X-ray Spectroscopy and Imaging Satellite (XRISM) and the Small Lunar Lander Demonstration Vehicle (SLIM) was postponed to August 27, but the weather is expected to worsen,” JAXA said in a statement.
“We will reassess whether the launch on August 28 will be possible or not, depending on the weather conditions from tomorrow onwards,” it added.
SLIM, also known as "Moon Sniper" in Japanese, is expected to arrive in lunar orbit 3 to 4 months after launch. —IANS
