Smart Lander for Investigating Moon

Smart Lander for Investigating Moon
	Half-scale model of SLIM in landing configuration
Names	SLIM
Mission type	Lunar lander and lunar rover
Operator	JAXA
COSPAR ID	2023-137D
SATCAT no.	57803
Website	Official website
Mission duration	8 months, 22 days (elapsed) (since launch); 4 months, 8 days (since landing)
Spacecraft properties
Manufacturer	Mitsubishi Electric
Launch mass	590 kg (1301 lb)
Dry mass	120 kg (265 lb)
Dimensions	1.5 × 1.5 × 2 m (4 ft 11 in × 4 ft 11 in × 6 ft 7 in)
Start of mission
Launch date	6 September 2023 23:42:11 UTC
Rocket	H-IIA 202
Launch site	Tanegashima Space Center
Contractor	Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
End of mission
Last contact
Lunar orbiter
Orbital insertion	25 December 2023 07:51 UTC
Lunar lander
Landing date	19 January 2024 15:20:00 UTC
Landing site	near Shioli crater; 13°18′58″S 25°15′04″E / 13.3160°S 25.2510°E

Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) is a lunar lander mission of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The lander's initial launch date in 2021^[2]^[6] was postponed until 2023 due to delays in its rideshare, the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM).^[7] On 6 September 2023 at 23:42 UTC,^[a]^[3] XRISM launched, and SLIM separated from it later that day.

On 1 October 2023, SLIM executed its trans-lunar orbit injection burns. The lander entered lunar orbit on 25 December 2023 and landed on 19 January 2024 at 15:20 UTC, making Japan the fifth country to soft-land a spacecraft on the Moon. News reports of technical difficulties made it to Earth, saying that the lander's solar panels were not oriented to the Sun; however, on 29 January, the lander became operational after conditions shifted. It has survived three lunar nights, awakening once more in April.^[8]^[9]

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^ Mike Wall (28 March 2024). "Still alive! Japan's SLIM moon lander survives its 2nd lunar night (photo)". Space.com. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
^ Robert Lea (24 April 2024). "Japan's SLIM moon lander defies death to survive 3rd frigid lunar night (image)". Space.com. Retrieved 24 April 2024.

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[9] Mike Wall (28 March 2024). "Still alive! Japan's SLIM moon lander survives its 2nd lunar night (photo)". Space.com. Retrieved 29 March 2024.

[10] Robert Lea (24 April 2024). "Japan's SLIM moon lander defies death to survive 3rd frigid lunar night (image)". Space.com. Retrieved 24 April 2024.

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