Japan postponed historic lunar landing module mission due to bad weather

Japan wanted to send its first ever landing module to the Moon today. However, due to unsuitable weather conditions, the launch had to be postponed.

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The launch was scheduled for 20:26 (EDT) or 17:26 (PDT). The Japanese space agency prepared the H-IIA rocket for launch, but weather intervened. Twenty minutes before the countdown began, the launch was cancelled due to strong wind gusts near the spaceport in the western part of the country. A new date has not yet been set.

The Japanese landing module is called the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM). It weighs almost 2,000kg and is 240cm high. The mission of the vehicle is to investigate the topography and craters of the Moon.

It should be noted that the Japanese Space Agency participates in the American lunar programme Artemis. Data collected by the SLIM module will be used in the NASA project.

Source: NHK