Japan’s Space Exploration Agency (JAXA) has announced that its Moon lander, the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM), has survived a second lunar night and was able to send back some photos. On January 19, SLIM successfully landed on the Moon, making Japan the fifth nation to reach Earth’s natural satellite.
Unfortunately, the craft tipped over onto its side after landing, affecting its energy production as its solar panels faced in a suboptimal direction. Despite this setback, SLIM was able to deploy its two experimental rovers and capture some images of the Moon before being put to sleep due to lower than expected solar energy production.
Fortunately, JAXA was able to revive SLIM in late February after it survived the harsh conditions of a lunar night. On March 27, JAXA was able to ping SLIM and received a response, indicating that the lander was still operational. This news was met with cheers from the SLIM control room, showing the excitement of the team.
However, some temperature sensors and battery cells on SLIM are starting to malfunction, with the majority of its functions still operational. JAXA continued to test SLIM on March 29 but the lander entered a dormant state on the following day. The space agency’s team is currently assessing the situation to understand the state of the machine.
An update on April 1 indicated that it is uncertain whether SLIM will survive a third lunar night as some functions are gradually failing. However, JAXA expressed their appreciation for the continued support from
