In first-ever Japanese lunar mission, SpaceX launches spacecraft. See details

In what can be called Japan's first-ever lunar mission and the first by a private firm, a spacecraft of a startup of the country was launched to the Moon by Elon Musk's SpaceX at Cape Canaveral in Florida on Sunday.

The spacecraft, which has been produced by Tokyo-based startup ispace, was launched. This comes after delays occurred twice for more pre-flight checks. It was blasted off aboard a Falcon 9 rocket at 2:38 am (0738 GMT). The live footage of the launch was also shown.

The company’s CEO, Takeshi Hakamada, asserted that their first voyage will create the foundation for developing the potential for Moon and making it a workable economic system.


Only the US, Russia and China have succeeded in successfully putting a robot on the moon so far.



The mission carried out by the private firm is the first edition of the Hakuto-R programme meaning "white rabbit" in Japanese.

The business predicted that their lunar module will land on the moon’s surface in April 2023. The spacecraft measures slightly 2 by 2.5 metres.

The Google Lunar XPrize project to send a rover to the Moon by 2018 did not have a winner. Five candidates made it to the finals. Hakuto, SORATO, and SpaceIL were among the competitors in it.

Ispace, a company with less than 200 employees, has stated that it wants to expand the spectrum of human existence into space and build a sustainable planet by offering high-frequency, economical space transportation services.

FAQs:

1. Why is the mission called white rabbit?
   The mission is called white rabbit because the spacecraft will reach the Moon’s surface in 2023, which is the year of the rabbit in Japanese.
2. What is the spacecraft carrying?
   The spacecraft is carrying a 10 kg UAE-built rover as a payload.