The Hakuto-R probe, from Japanese space, will attempt to land on the lunar surface on Tuesday (25). If all goes well, it will become the first private spacecraft to land on the Moon, and it will also add Japan to the short list of countries that have managed to land their ships to our natural satellite; So far, only China, the Soviet Union, and the United States have achieved this feat.
The main site of the attempted landing is Atlas Crater, a feature about 90 km in diameter located in the outer region of Mare Frigoris, in the far north of the Moon. If circumstances require a change of landing site, ispace has three other alternatives; If I continue with any of them, the landing will be on April 26, May 1 or 3.
To descend to the lunar surface, Hakuto-R will need to perform a series of steps that should take an hour to complete. The first is to activate its engines to brake and decelerate in orbit. Then, through a series of predetermined commands, it will adjust its direction and reduce speed for a soft landing on the moon.
Hakuto-R, launched in 2022 by the M1 mission (short for “Mission 1”), is orbiting the Moon on a trajectory that allows it to stay within 100 kilometers of the surface. Since its introduction into orbit, our natural satellite has sent back beautiful images from space — the latest of which shows Earth “rising” behind the Moon during a hybrid solar eclipse, which occurred on the 20th.
Inside, the probe was carried by the UAE Space Agency’s Rashid rover. It contains an artificial intelligence system and cameras developed by Canadian companies, and if the probe lands, the vehicle will search for minerals and compounds of interest on the lunar surface.
How to watch the Hakuto-R landing live
The Hakuto-R lander is scheduled to attempt a landing at 2:40 PM Brasilia time. ispace will be broadcasting the event from 12pm on its YouTube channel. You can follow along in the video below:
source: ispace
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