Slim Revives Career of Japanese Shot Putter

Slim, a special camera-equipped lander, is currently being used to investigate lunar rocks despite experiencing a fall. This was reported on January 31, 2024, at 18:55.

In Japan, the ball launcher has been successfully fixed. The Japanese space agency, Jaxa, was able to reestablish contact with the Slim lander on a Sunday.

Slim was reactivated ten days after Japan successfully landed the device on the moon’s surface for the first time.

The lander has started its exploration of the moon’s environment and has already sent images of nearby rocks back to Earth. The data gathered from these moon rocks will assist Japan in planning future hearings.

Japan had previously launched a lander on January 19, making it the fifth Earth lander on the moon’s surface. However, the sonar rang its bell at the same time.

The rotation caused the lander’s solar panels to be unable to receive sunlight, preventing Slim from powering its devices.

Consequently, air traffic control put the lander into sleep mode just three hours after it had touched down on the moon.

This tactic proved effective. As the lunar day progressed, the sun’s position relative to the lander changed, allowing the solar panels to receive sunlight.

Slim was reactivated on Sunday, January 28, and air traffic control quickly resumed the tasks assigned to Slim, according to Space.com.

Slim has used its camera to photograph the surrounding rocks, providing insight into their composition.

The camera responds differently to each rock and mineral, producing different wavelengths. By analyzing these images, researchers can gather information about the history of the moon’s rocks.

Air traffic control is currently categorizing the images and has named the largest rocks after dog breeds, as stated by Jaxa.

However, it is unclear how long Slim will be able to withstand the harsh lunar conditions.

The sun is expected to shine in Slim’s area for a few more days. The region is located at the mid-latitudes of the moon, approximately 322 kilometers south of the Sea of ​​Tranquility.

The first astronauts landed in the Sea of ​​Tranquility during the Apollo 11 mission in July 1969.

Air traffic control has previously stated that Slim was not designed to survive the moon’s cold night, which lasts about 14 days at a time.