JAPAN: Japanese space start-up, ispace, has announced that its attempt to land on the Moon has failed. The Hakuto-R Mission 1 lander was supposed to touch down on the lunar surface overnight, but contact with the lander was lost about 25 minutes after the landing was supposed to occur. The company has stated that the lander made a “hard landing” on the Moon’s surface.
Although the mission failed, ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada has said that the firm will continue with its plans for new missions. Hakamada believes that the company has gained valuable experience and data from the attempt. The engineers are currently working to determine the cause of the failure.
Ispace had been developing the mission since its launch last December aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which carried payloads from several countries, including a lunar rover from the United Arab Emirates. Although this was a frustrating setback for the company, Hakamada has pledged that it will not change its plans for future missions.
Ispace aims to develop a sustainable world by providing low-cost transportation services to the Moon and believes that the Moon will eventually support a population of 1,000 people by 2040, with 10,000 more visiting each year. The firm is planning a second mission, scheduled for next year, that includes a lunar landing and the deployment of its own rover.
The failure of the Hakuto-R Mission 1 lander marks yet another setback for private space companies attempting to reach the Moon. Previously, Israeli organization SpaceIL watched its lander crash into the Moon’s surface in April 2019, and India’s attempt to land a spacecraft on the Moon in 2016 also failed. Despite the challenges, the future looks bright for lunar exploration, as two US companies, Astrobotic and Intuitive Machines, are scheduled to attempt Moon landings later this year.
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