Successful Lunar Landing of Small Lunar Lander Demonstrator 'SLIM', Images and Achievements Captured by Camera | Release #64

Launched in September 2023, Japan's probe gracefully landed on the moon on January 20, achieving a significant historical milestone.

This probe, with its highly accurate landing capability, managed to land within just 100 meters of its target site, making Japan the fifth country in the world to land on the moon.

is equipped with a special camera designed to closely examine the lunar surface. This camera aims to analyze the composition of lunar rocks, gathering valuable scientific information about the moon's surface.

The moon is vastly different from Earth, with daytime temperatures reaching 110 degrees Celsius and dropping to minus 170 degrees at night. These extreme temperature changes pose significant challenges for the probe and its onboard equipment. One reason the camera on stopped functioning was the harshness of the 'lunar night'.

However, on February 1, the system that generates power using sunlight was restored, allowing the camera to be reactivated during certain periods to prepare for further lunar surface photography.

The camera on captured numerous images shortly after landing. In a shorter time than planned, it took 257 images and transmitted them to Earth. From these images, a detailed mosaic of the lunar surface was created, particularly observing rocks known as 'olivine'.

Although successfully transmitted all the scientific observation data it captured to Earth, the battery was subsequently disconnected from the system to prevent over-discharge.

As of February 20, the mission of SLIM was rated at '60 points'. However, according to the latest announcement, many achievements exceeding initial predictions have been realized, and future research results are highly anticipated. The data sent from SLIM is still being analyzed, and JAXA plans to continue publishing its findings.

cover image by hotaru