TOKYO, May 27. The crash of the first Japanese lunar module of the Hakuto-R project was due to an incorrect height estimate, to this opinion the developers of the ispace company came.
The lunar landing was supposed to take place on April 26, Tokyo time, but communication with the module was lost, and the developers reported a probable hard landing of the device.
A month after the crash, they gave clarifications about the causes of the accident, NHK reported.
The module, flying over a cliff about 3 kilometers high, incorrectly estimated the height and distance to the surface of the Moon and began its descent, when in reality it was separated from the Moon by a distance of 5 kilometers. During the descent, he continued to consume fuel, as a result of which, after 2 minutes, it ended, and the module crashed to the surface of the moon.
Despite this bad experience, the company intends to make the necessary adjustments and send the module back to the Moon next year.
The first Japanese lunar lander was launched on December 11, 2022 from Cape Canaveral by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Prior to this, the launch was postponed several times for technical reasons by SpaceX. The module was supposed to be the first part of the Hakuto-R lunar project, which is being carried out by the private company ispace. The lunar module should be the first Japanese device of its kind. -1867751044.html» data-title=»Media: Communication with Japanese Hakuto-R module lost ten meters from the Moon»>