Japan's ispace postpones its second Moon mission to 2024; says 2022 launch on track

Japan's private space company ispace Inc, in the latest update, announced to postpone its second mission to the Moon to 2024. Named Mission 2 (M2), the lunar endeavour was earlier targeted for 2023 but the company said that it has delayed the project to 'reflect internal and external conditions'. The Tokyo-based firm has planned a series of Moon missions, starting with Mission 1 (M1), which is planned for launch in the fourth quarter of 2022.

M1 is on track, ispace reveals

Updating about the status of Japan's first lunar mission this year, ispace said that the M1 development is on track and the company’s lunar lander, called Series 1, being developed for the mission will enter its final stage of assembly and integration in February. "The target launch timing for M1 is currently planned for Q4 2022, at the earliest, based on the current development schedule", the company said in its statement. 

ispace Founder and CEO, Takeshi Hakamada, on the other hand, said as per the company's statement that the forthcoming year is the most important for them and expressed his gratitude towards his employees. "There is still a lot of work to do, so we must remain focused and steadfast as we progress toward our first mission. However, by this time next year, I am optimistic that we will be able to look up at the Moon during the New Year celebrations and see it in a way we’ve never seen before", he added. 

In the days ahead, the M1 team will execute mating of the main upper and lower assemblies, and ensure the installation of components such as radiators, multi-layer insulation, solar panels, and the landing gear of the lander. It will then be shipped for a launch aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket in the US. Space.com reported that the Series 1 lander will carry the United Arab Emirates' Rashid lunar rover to the Moon as part of its payload. 

Status of M2

( IIlustration of micro rover; image: ispace)

The company is developing a micro-rover for M2, which currently is in the preliminary designing stages. ispace said that its efforts are to design a small-size and low-mass rover and revealed that it will deploy multiple micro rovers to explore and collect data on the lunar surface. The company is reportedly developing another lander, named Series 2, with a payload capacity of 500 kilograms which is likely to be launched during M3, the company's third lunar mission. 

(Image: space)