Countries around the world are continuing their strides in space research. For example, Turkish citizen Alper Gezeravcı left for the International Space Station on the night of January 18 to 19. Now an important step has come from Japan.

Japanlanded on the moon for the first time in its history. The SLIM spacecraft, sent by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), will arrive on the moon this evening. soft landing carried out. This mission made Japan the fifth country to send a vehicle to the moon.

SLIM has landed successfully

SLIM landed on the moon around 6:20 PM GMT. The vehicle, which also carried several small robots, landed about 100 meters away from the crater called Shioli. The vehicle is expected to remain operational on the moon for 1 day. So he will only be alive for a very short time.

The vehicle was launched in September last year on Japan’s H-2A rocket. SLIM, which has come a slow and long way by saving energy, reached our satellite at the end of December. It was then prepared for landing day for three weeks.

An artistic representation of the SLIM moon landing.

SLIM, also known as “Moon sniper”, is a new technology that will allow future spacecraft to make precise landings on other planets or satellites. testing navigation technology. In other words, it will show that in lunar missions it is possible to land in desired places rather than just in convenient places. The purpose of the mission is to demonstrate these skills.

JAXA says this technology could be useful for landings in rugged areas of the moon in the future. The agency added that it could take up to a month to verify whether the mission has achieved its objectives. It will also investigate the crater with cameras. Small rovers separated from the vehicle will travel across the lunar surface.

This is actually not Japan’s first attempt to land on the moon. In 2022, a trial was conducted with a vehicle called OMOTENASHI. However, the connection was lost and the mission failed.