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Source– This post is based on the article “How Japan’s moon-landing attempt in January will affect Chandrayaan 4 | Explained” published in “The Hindu” on 27th December 2023.
Why in the News?
Japan’s SLIM spacecraft has entered lunar orbit, aiming for a moon landing on January 19, potentially marking it as the fifth country to achieve a soft landing on the moon.
What is SLIM (Smart Lander for Investigating Moon) Mission?
| Specifications | Details |
| What is it? | SLIM is Japan’s first lunar surface mission. |
| Objective | To showcase precision landing capabilities on the Moon, targeting a landing within 100 meters of its chosen site near the Shioli crater. Note- Given that the mission aims to soft-land with the smallest ever area tolerance on the moon, it is also being called as Moon Sniper. |
| Launch | 1) Built by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). 2) It was launched on September 7, 2023, along with the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) space telescope. |
| Weight | It weighs a mere 590 kg, nearly one-seventh of the weight of Chandrayaan-3 which launched at 3,900 kg. |
| Features | 1) SLIM is lighter because it carried much less fuel. 2) Orbital mechanics- It utilized earth gravity to build kinetic energy, eventually aligning its trajectory with the moon for a slower approach and capture. 3) Once it gets close to the moon, it will get deflected into the deeper space by the combined forces of Earth and Moon. 4) This larger, more loopy path that was designed to bring it back near the moon after it had slowed down further, allowing it to get captured by the Moon’s orbit. 5) Upon soft landing, SLIM will deploy two small rovers called Lunar Excursion Vehicle (LEV) 1 and 2. They will study the lunar surface near the landing point, collect temperature and radiation readings, and attempt to study the moon’s mantle. |
| Significance for Chandrayaan 4 | Success of SLIM, especially with respect to its low weight and precision landing could play a crucial role in the Lunar Polar Exploration (LUPEX) Mission, a joint effort of ISRO and JAXA. |
Note- XRISM mission objective is to investigate celestial X-ray objects in the Universe with high-throughput imaging and high-resolution spectroscopy.
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