Japanese space exploration firm ispace is gearing up for its second attempt at landing on the moon. Mission 2, featuring a lander named Resilience and a tiny rover dubbed Tenacious, is now targeted to launch from Florida’s Space Coast on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket no earlier than December.
The primary landing site for Resilience is near the center of Mare Frigoris, or the “Sea of Cold,” which lies at 60.5 degrees north latitude and 4.6 degrees west longitude. The site was chosen based on engineering and operational constraints, as well as scientific value.
Resilience will carry five payloads, including water electrolyzer equipment, a self-contained module for food production experiments, a deep-space radiation probe, and a commemorative alloy plate. Tenacious, the micro rover, will sport a forward-mounted HD camera and carry “Moonhouse,” a small red house framed in white from artist Mikael Genberg.
The mission is based on ispace’s roughly 2,200-pound HAKUTO-R lander and will be the firm’s second effort at a moon landing. The first attempt failed due to an onboard altitude sensor being confused by the rim of a crater. The new Resilience lander features upgraded software and other adjustments based on the experiences from the first mission.
Mission 2 follows a flurry of lunar landing missions in 2024, with ispace also developing a larger lander, named Apex 1.0, expected to fly on Mission 3 around 2026.
Source: https://www.space.com/japan-ispace-second-private-moon-mission-launch-spacex-december-2024