Japanese Lunar Lander Touches Down And Axiom Space Launches Third Mission With SpaceX

Hello and welcome back to the latest space news. This week, we have exciting updates on the Japanese lunar lander and Axiom Space’s recent mission with SpaceX. Let’s dive into the details.

Story of the Week: Japanese Lunar Lander SLIM

The highlight of the week is the successful touchdown of the Japanese lunar lander, SLIM (Smart Lander for Investigating Moon). This remarkable achievement marks Japan as the fifth country to land a spacecraft on the moon, joining the ranks of the United States, China, Russia, and India. The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) confirmed the receipt of telemetry data from SLIM, signifying a significant milestone in space exploration.

Despite the successful landing, a minor setback occurred as the lander’s solar cells are currently not generating electricity, potentially reducing the mission’s lifetime. JAXA officials mentioned the possibility of the solar cells charging as the angle of the sun changes, depending on the cause of the issue. Nevertheless, the mission accomplished a major part of its goal by demonstrating a soft lunar landing using optical navigation technology, paving the way for precise landings in the future.

Launch Highlights: Axiom Space’s Third Mission

In another exciting development, Axiom Space launched its third mission in partnership with SpaceX, marking the first crewed mission of the year. Notably, this mission was entirely private, with no NASA astronauts on board. The crew successfully docked with the International Space Station, setting the stage for Axiom Space to continue conducting private missions to the ISS at a pace of approximately two missions per year through 2026. Axiom’s ambitious plans include the launch of its first commercial space station module in 2026, with the fourth flight, Ax-4, scheduled for later this year.