First Time A Private Company Will Land On The Moon [Video]

Today is an important day for humanity’s space adventure. Because ispace, a company based in Japan, will try to land on the Moon as of 18:00. We can explain why this is important as follows: If no problems occur, a private company will officially land on the Moon for the first time in history.

The Japanese developed a spacecraft called M1 as part of the Hakuto-R mission for this special mission. This spacecraft was launched into space with SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket on December 11, 2022, and has been orbiting the Moon since March. Today, this spacecraft will attempt to land on the Moon.

You can watch ispace’s moon landing mission right below

What kind of company is ispace, exactly?

Founded in Tokyo in 2010, the company has been working for a while to develop robotic spacecraft. The spacecraft called M1 is one of the first fruits of these studies.

What does ispace aim for?

The Japanese company’s number one goal is to act as a low-cost space transportation company. In other words, this company wants to send cargo and rockets to space just like SpaceX. It is also intended to be an alternative for space missions such as exploration missions. Today’s task will be a concrete start for all this.

What will M1 do by landing on the Moon?

If M1 can land successfully on the Moon, it will leave the cargo it took with it to the lunar surface. So what loads are there? The Japan Space Exploration Agency (JAXA) has developed a robot called SORA-Q for this mission. In addition, the 22-kilogram lunar observation vehicle Rashid of the United Arab Emirates will be released to the Moon with the M1.

Where will M1 land on the Moon?

According to the official statement, M1 will try to land in a crater called Atlas in the northeastern quadrant of the Moon. ispace announced that this crater was specially selected to measure the capacity of the spacecraft.

Israel has attempted an unsuccessful Moon landing in the past

It is not the first time that private companies have tried to land on the Moon. In 2019, SpaceIL, an Israel-based company, tried to land a spacecraft called “Beresheet” on the Moon, but failed. The spacecraft crashed into the lunar surface and became unusable.