Japan's Resilience moon lander, built by ispace, has successfully completed a lunar flyby, bringing it closer to its historic touchdown attempt.
- Flyby Details: The lander came within 5,220 miles (8,400 kilometers) of the lunar surface on February 14th, 2025. This flyby was a crucial step in its journey, providing a fuel-saving gravity assist that will make its arrival in lunar orbit more efficient.
- Journey So Far: Resilience launched on January 15th, 2025, atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. This mission marks ispace's second attempt at a lunar landing. Their first lander successfully reached lunar orbit in 2023 but failed during the touchdown.
- Landing Site and Payloads: Resilience is targeting a landing in Mare Frigoris ("Sea of Cold") in the moon's northern hemisphere, with touchdown expected in late May or early June. It carries five science and technology payloads, including a mini rover named Tenacious.
- Significance: This mission is significant as it's a private commercial lunar lander developed by a Japanese company. It aims to gather lunar data and demonstrate technology for future lunar exploration.
This successful flyby is a major milestone for ispace and Japan's lunar exploration program. It paves the way for a potential historic touchdown, which would be a significant achievement in lunar exploration.