Japan's SLIM lunar probe returns to life more than a week after landing upside down<p>Japan's lunar lander has regained power a full nine days after it landed on the moon's surface <a data-i13n="cpos:1;pos:1" href="
https://www.engadget.com/japans-slim-lunar-spacecraft-landed-upside-down-on-the-moon-202819728.html">nearly upside down[/url] and was subsequently switched off, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) <a data-i13n="cpos:2;pos:1" href="
https://twitter.com/SLIM_JAXA/status/1751766255810556340">announced[/url]. A change in the sun's position allowed the solar panels to receive light and charge the probe's battery, allowing JAXA to re-establish communication. </p>
<p>Things were looking dire shortly after the SLIM (Smart Lander for Investigating Moon) touched down. The agency immediately noticed a problem with power generation, but was able to launch a pair of probes onto the moon's surface. The Lunar Excursion Vehicle 2 (LEV-2) snapped an incredible photo of SLIM, showing it to be upside down with its panels pointing away from the sun. The cause was found to be a malfunction of the main engine.</p>
<span id="end-legacy-contents"></span><div id="1240c5c2945f4598bcd71a0164d2df6b"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Communication with SLIM was successfully established last night, and operations resumed! Science observations were immediately started with the MBC, and we obtained first light for the 10-band observation. This figure shows the “toy poodle” observed in the multi-band observation.
pic.twitter.com/WYD4NlYDaG</p>— 小型月着陸実証機SLIM (@SLIM_JAXA)
January 29, 2024 </div>
<p>JAXA thought there was a chance the probe could recover once the sun's rays pointed more toward the solar panels, and that's exactly what transpired. Shortly after power was regained, it snapped another picture of a previously imaged rock formation called "toy poodle" using a multi-band spectral camera. The team is also targeting several other rocks with canine-themed names, including "St. Bernard," "Bulldog" and "Shibainu."</p>
<p>The upside-down landing may have seemed like an unrecoverable fault, but it looks like the mission can now proceed more or less as planned. While the baseball-sized LEV-2 explores the surface (relaying data via the LEV-1 probe, which also has two cameras), SLIM will grab whatever science it can. </p>
<p>In any case, the mission was already deemed a success, as the primary goal was a precision landing. It did just that, hitting a spot just 55 meters (180 feet) of its target. It's not known how much longer SLIM can function, as it was never designed to survive a solar night and the next one happens on Thursday. </p>This article originally appeared on Engadget at
https://www.engadget.com/japans-slim-lunar-probe-returns-to-life-more-than-a-week-after-landing-upside-down-124507467.html?src=rssSource:
Japan's SLIM lunar probe returns to life more than a week after landing upside down
