Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) launched the H-IIA rocket No. 47 from the Tanegashima Space Center earlier this year, carrying onboard the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's 'X -Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission satellite (XRISM) and 'Smart Lander for Investigating the Moon (SLIM).' The rocket executed its planned flight, and the XRISM and SLIM were successfully placed into their designated orbits. Given that the field of space development has witnessed several setbacks over the years, including the failures of the H3 and Epsilon rockets, this success brought relief to many individuals associated with this field.
Provided by MHI
Japan has invested significant technological efforts in the development of the H-IIA rocket, which represents an extremely important flagship space launch vehicle dedicated to ensuring Japan's independence in space activities and strengthening its international competitiveness. With this, 46 out of 47 launches have been successful, leading to a success rate of 97.9%.
The XRISM is designed to study the evolution of celestial objects by investigating the flow of matter and energy through precise X-ray spectroscopic imaging of high-temperature plasma, which represents wind flowing across galaxies. With this, the XRISM is expected to solve various mysteries such as the stability of galaxy clusters, even over scales of 10 billion years, and the origins of various elements in the universe.
The SLIM aims to be the first Japanese mission lander to land on the Moon, and the data recorded by the SLIM are expected to make significant contributions to the field of future space exploration, including the Artemis Plan.
This article has been translated by JST with permission from The Science News Ltd. (https://sci-news.co.jp/). Unauthorized reproduction of the article and photographs is prohibited.