A private lunar lander from Japan is closing in on the moon, aiming for a touchdown in the unexplored far north with a mini rover.
The moon landing attempt by Tokyo-based company ispace, on Friday Japan time, is the latest entry in the rapidly expanding commercial lunar rush, reports AP.
The encore comes two years after the company’s first moonshot ended in a crash landing, giving rise to the name Resilience for its successor lander. Resilience carries a rover with a shovel to gather lunar dirt and a toy-sized red house by Swedish artist Mikael Genberg, to be placed on the moon’s surface.
Private ventures have pursued the moon since 2019, with more failures than successes. Launched in January, Resilience entered lunar orbit last month, sharing a SpaceX ride with Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost, which landed successfully in March. Intuitive Machines followed but crash-landed near the moon’s south pole.
Resilience targets the moon’s northern Mare Frigoris — a flatter, safer region. Once power and communication are established, the 7.5-foot (2.3-meter) lander will deploy its 11-pound (5 kg) rover, Tenacious. Made of carbon fiber-reinforced plastic, the four-wheeled rover carries a high-def camera and shovel to scout the area and collect soil for NASA. It will travel slowly near the lander.
In addition to scientific payloads, Tenacious carries Moonhouse, a red cottage with white trim and a green door. CEO and founder Takeshi Hakamada called the mission “merely a steppingstone.” A larger lander, with NASA’s involvement, is planned for 2027.
“We’re not trying to corner the market. We’re trying to build the market,” said Jeremy Fix, chief engineer for ispace’s U.S. arm. “It’s a huge market, a huge potential." He noted the company lacks “infinite funds” and can't afford repeated failures.
Blue Origin and Astrobotic plan landings by year’s end. Only five countries have achieved robotic lunar landings. NASA aims to send astronauts around the moon in 2026, with a crewed landing to follow. China plans its own by 2030.
Bd-pratidin English/FNC
