Jaxa’s Slim Spacecraft Proves Resilience During Lunar Nights
Japan’s space agency, Jaxa, has announced that the Slim spacecraft has successfully responded to commands from Earth, proving its resilience during the harsh lunar nights. The spacecraft endured its second lunar night, capturing new images of its landing site on the Moon. Despite some temperature sensor and battery malfunctions due to the cold, Slim has maintained most of its functions after the second lunar night, demonstrating its ability to withstand adverse lunar conditions. Slim’s successful response to Earth commands after enduring the harsh lunar night underscores its importance in lunar exploration and provides invaluable insights into the challenging lunar environment, furthering our understanding of the Moon’s surface and its potential for scientific exploration.
NASA and SpaceX Conduct Successful Testing of Starship HLS Docking System for Artemis Missions
NASA and SpaceX have completed full-scale qualification testing of the docking system for the Starship Human Landing System, a critical milestone in NASA’s Artemis campaign to establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon. The system, based on SpaceX’s Dragon 2 active docking system, will enable crewed Artemis missions to the lunar surface, with astronauts transferring between spacecraft to carry out lunar landings and return to Earth. The recent testing at NASA’s Johnson Space Center validated the computer models of the Moon lander’s docking system, demonstrating the system’s ability to perform a ‘soft capture’ while in the active docking role. This achievement underscores SpaceX’s commitment to the Artemis mission and NASA’s goal of landing the first woman, the first person of color, and its first international partner astronaut on the lunar surface.
Intuitive Machines’ IM-1 Lunar Lander Mission Prepares for Mid-February Launch
Final preparations are underway for the launch of Intuitive Machines’ first lunar lander mission, the IM-1, in mid-February. The mission will carry payloads from NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program as well as for commercial customers. Joel Kearns, deputy…
SpaceX Successfully Launches 23 Starlink Satellites with Falcon 9 Rocket
On January 7, 2024, a Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched 23 Starlink satellites into orbit from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The launch took place at 5:35 p.m. EST, following a four-hour launch window that opened at 4 p.m. EST….