A laser navigation glitch has caused Japan’s ispace lunar lander, Resilience, to crash into the moon—marking the company’s second failed lunar landing attempt in two years.
On Tuesday, officials from ispace announced from Tokyo that the laser range finder on Resilience failed to activate in time, preventing the spacecraft from accurately measuring its distance to the lunar surface. As a result, the lander descended too quickly, at a rate of 42 meters per second, before losing contact and crashing five seconds later.
The mission aimed to land Resilience in the moon’s far northern region known as Mare Frigoris, or the Sea of Cold. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter later captured images of the crash site, revealing the wreckage of Resilience and its mini rover.
This incident mirrors ispace’s first attempt in 2023, where software issues led to a crash during the final descent phase. Despite these setbacks, ispace remains undeterred. The company is pressing ahead with a third moon landing attempt scheduled for 2027, in cooperation with NASA, and is planning a fourth mission as well.
“We have not stepped down in the face of setbacks,” said Takeshi Hakamada, CEO and founder of ispace. “We’re firmly taking the next step toward our future missions.”
The company plans to invest an additional 1.5 billion yen (over $10 million) in extra tests and improvements to ensure the success of their upcoming missions. Outside experts will join the accident review, and ispace will collaborate more closely with the Japanese Space Agency on technical matters.
Of the seven private moon landing attempts in recent years, only one has achieved total success: Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lander, which touched down in March. Blue Ghost had launched alongside Resilience in January, sharing a SpaceX rocket from Florida.
ispace’s determination highlights the challenges and ambitions in the new era of private space exploration. As they work to regain customers’ trust, their efforts signify a commitment to pushing the boundaries of lunar exploration.
