Japan became the fifth country to set foot on the moon

The Japanese space agency JAXA announced that Japan today became the fifth country to send a spacecraft to the moon.

The SLIM spacecraft landed around 17:20 (GMT) and communicated with the operating room, but its solar panels are not generating power, perhaps because they are not at the right angle.

The mission aims to test “precision” technology for lander and give new impetus to the Japanese space program, which has faced many problems in recent years.

“SLIM runs only on its own battery, and we are giving priority to transmitting its data to Earth,” Hitoshi Kuninaka, head of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, said at a press conference.

This vehicle, nicknamed the “Moon Sniper,” attempted to land within 100 meters of its target, instead of several kilometers like other traditional spacecraft. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency says this technology will be a very powerful tool for exploring the lunar poles in the future, where oxygen and water can exist. However, it will take about a month to verify whether SLIM has achieved its goals.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency seeks to play a greater role in space in cooperation with the United States and against China. Among other things, it plans to send an astronaut to the Moon as part of NASA's Artemis program in the coming years.

So far, only four countries – the former Soviet Union, the United States, China and India – have successfully landed a spacecraft on the moon.