On Sunday morning, a Japanese rocket with an unmanned commercial lander was launched onto the lunar surface. The launch was delayed twice last week due to additional checks.
The Japanese company iSpace wants to be the first commercial company to land on the moon. So far, only the United States, the Soviet Union (Russia) and China have succeeded. Attempts by Israel and India failed.
In the long term, ispace wants to extract raw materials and water from the lunar surface. This could help build a manned base on the moon. The Hakuto-R mission is to test the design and technology.
Scout Rashid will also accompany the probe. It was developed by the United Arab Emirates. The rover must roam the lunar surface for about two weeks to conduct scientific research using cameras and sensors.
Rashid weighs about 10 kilograms, has a length and width of more than 50 centimeters, and a height of about 70 centimeters. In 2020, a satellite from the Emirates went to Mars.
The probe and orbiter were flown into space by SpaceX, the space company of entrepreneur Elon Musk. The launch took place from Kennedy Space Center, the historic space base at Cape Canaveral.
