A SpaceX rocket is due to take off on Wednesday with a Japanese-built lander on board, which might become the first private – and Japanese – machine to land on the Moon.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Kennedy Space Center on September 4, 2022 in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
A private Japanese lander takes off to the Moon on Wednesday – Gallery
ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada presents the Hakuto-R program, consisting of a lander and a rover, on September 26, 2018 in Tokyo.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Kennedy Space Center on September 4, 2022 in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled for 3:39 a.m. Wednesday (0839 GMT) from Cape Canaveral, Florida. A fallback date is scheduled for Thursday if necessary.
So far, only the United States, Russia and China have managed to land robots on the Moon, located regarding 400,000 km from Earth.
This mission of the Japanese company ispace is the first of a program called Hakuto-R. The lander, which measures just over 2 meters by 2.5 meters, is due to land around April 2023 on the visible side of the Moon, in the Atlas crater, according to a company statement.
The lander, which is not designed for a human crew, carries a small 10-kilogram rover, named Rashid, and built by the United Arab Emirates. This country is a newcomer to the space race, and has been trying to establish itself there in recent years. If successful, it will be the first lunar mission for an Arab country.
“We have accomplished so much in six short years since we started conceptualizing this project in 2016,” ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada said in a statement.
AFP