3 weeks ago
Japan's Lunar Excursion Vehicle (LEV-2) shows Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's SLIM (Smart Lander for Investigating Moon) connected nan Moon's surface, connected January 20. The Lander survived a 3rd lunar night, JAXA said connected Wednesday. Photo by JAXA/EPA-EFE
April 24 (UPI) -- Japan's satellite lander has survived a 3rd lunar night, thing that amazed moreover its designers, arsenic it continued to return snapshots and probe nan satellite's surface, officials said connected Wednesday.
The Smart Lander for Investigating nan Moon, aliases SLIM, came backmost to life aft emerging from nan acheronian and sent signals to nan Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
"Last nighttime (the nighttime of April 23), we were capable to successfully pass pinch SLIM which had started up again, and confirmed that SLIM had survived for nan 3rd time," JAXA said connected X connected Wednesday. The abstraction agency released a photograph taken by nan lander.
SLIM's expertise to past lunar nights, which tin past up to 2 weeks has been a interest since its landing but nan spacecraft has continued to defy skeptics.
"SLIM has maintained its superior functions moreover aft 3 overnight stays, which was not anticipated successful its design," JAXA said. "We will proceed to intimately show SLIM's information and dream to place areas that deteriorate depending connected nan lunar time and nighttime environment, arsenic good arsenic areas that are not prone to deterioration."
SLIM landed connected nan Moon connected Jan. 20, allowing Japan to join nan United States, China, Russia and India arsenic nan only countries to make a successful satellite landing. SLIM, though, landed upside down and initially mislaid powerfulness for 9 days earlier returning to power.
Last month, JAXA said nan SLIM had survived its 2nd lunar nighttime that lasted 2 weeks and continued to usability and communicate.
