Japan plans unmanned lunar mission for 2019

PanARMENIAN.Net - Japan plans to become the fourth country to accomplish an unmanned moon landing, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The government’s space policy committee Wednesday, November 11, updated the schedule of the nation’s space exploration program and marked 2019 as the year to launch an unmanned lander to the moon. The lander’s development is scheduled to start next year.

In 2013, China became the third country to conduct an unmanned moon landing, following the U.S. and the former Soviet Union. Although Japan is late to the race, getting there is not the sole objective of the mission.

According to the committee, Japan’s lunar lander will be developed with a new technology enabling it to land within 100 meters of its initial mark. Others missed by a far wider margin. Among technologies Japan will use to improve the accuracy will be those from a facial recognition system that will observe the surface of the moon to help make necessary adjustments.

To demonstrate such pinpoint landing precision will help increase Japan’s stature and presence in space exploration, including in future joint efforts with other countries, the committee said.

The government will seek public opinion about the lunar project and space exploration policies and finalize the plan within the year.