A Japanese venture firm says its lunar lander launched earlier this month is continuing a stable flight to the Moon.
The lander was launched by the Tokyo-based startup ispace from Florida on December 11 on a Space X Falcon-9 rocket. The startup aims to be the first private company to put a spacecraft on the lunar surface.
The company released images of the Earth taken from the lander.
One was taken two minutes after separation from the rocket. It shows the blue Earth on the left, with the Falcon 9 rocket as a tiny dot on the right.
The other one was taken 19 hours after separation and shows the Earth as a bright crescent.
The company says the lander is scheduled to reach a location about 1.4 million kilometers from the Earth around January 20. It will then approach the Moon using the Sun's gravity, and attempt to land in late April.
The lander was launched by the Tokyo-based startup ispace from Florida on December 11 on a Space X Falcon-9 rocket. The startup aims to be the first private company to put a spacecraft on the lunar surface.
The company released images of the Earth taken from the lander.
One was taken two minutes after separation from the rocket. It shows the blue Earth on the left, with the Falcon 9 rocket as a tiny dot on the right.
The other one was taken 19 hours after separation and shows the Earth as a bright crescent.
The company says the lander is scheduled to reach a location about 1.4 million kilometers from the Earth around January 20. It will then approach the Moon using the Sun's gravity, and attempt to land in late April.
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Summary
Japanese startup ispace's lunar lander, launched on December 11 from Florida via SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket, is en route to the Moon. The venture aims to be the first private company to land a spacecraft on the lunar surface. Earth images captured by the lander include one taken two minutes
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ID: 12937bc9-6c21-4057-b9b8-14c8fd9ebe52
Category ID: nhk
URL: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20221218_02/
Date: Dec. 18, 2022
Created: 2022/12/18 10:41
Updated: 2025/12/09 10:17
Last Read: 2022/12/18 10:44