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EI2GYB > ASTRO 25.08.21 14:55l 93 Lines 4268 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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Subj: Japanese company ispace unveils new, bigger moon lander
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Japanese company ispace unveils new, bigger moon lander
The 9-foot-tall (2.7 meters) spacecraft is scheduled to fly its
first moon mission in 2024.
A Japanese company that's already shooting for the moon has unveiled
more ambitious plans for a bigger, better lunar lander.
The Tokyo-based company ispace unveiled its next-generation
"Series 2" robotic moon lander Tuesday (Aug. 24) at the ??36th
Space Symposium in Colorado Springs. The 9-foot-tall (2.7 meters)
spacecraft, which can carry 1,100 pounds (500 kilograms) of payload to
the lunar surface, is scheduled to debut in 2024, on ispace's third moon mission.
"As we look to the near future, Series 2 will enable us to not only
increase our capabilities, but also to provide greater access and
opportunities for our customers," ispace founder and CEO Takeshi
Hakamada said in a statement.
"Series 2 is a positive step toward realizing a diverse and sustainable
cislunar ecosystem."
ispace's first moon mission is scheduled to launch next year on a
SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
On that flight, an ispace Series 1 lander will deliver to the lunar
surface the United Arab Emirates' Rashid rover, as well as a number
of other payloads for a variety of customers.
The lander for that mission is currently undergoing final assembly at
a facility in Germany, ispace representatives said in Tuesday's statement.
The company is targeting 2023 for the launch of its second moon mission,
which is also expected to fly on a Falcon 9.
Then the moonlight will shine on the Series 2, which ispace plans to
develop in partnership with American technology companies General
Atomics and Draper.
Work is already well underway on the new lander; it passed a key
milestone known as preliminary design review in June, ispace
representatives said.
The Series 2 "has a modular payload design with multiple payload bays,
allowing for flexibility and optimization for a wider range of
government, commercial and scientific customers," ispace representatives
wrote in the same statement.
"Notably, the lander aims to be one of the first commercial lunar
landers capable of surviving the lunar night and is designed to have
the ability to land on either the near side or far side of the moon,
including polar regions," they added.
The polar regions are of great interest to NASA, which is working to
establish a permanent, sustainable human presence on and around the
moon through its Artemis program. That's because the permanently shadowed
floors of many polar craters are thought to harbor huge amounts of
water ice, a crucial resource for lunar development.
NASA plans to send a variety of scientific and technological hardware
to the moon aboard robotic commercial spacecraft over the next few years
to aid the ambitious Artemis effort. ispace hopes the Series 2 is an
attractive option for the space agency, which is booking these rides v
ia a program called Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS).
"Over the next few months, we will work closely with Draper and General
Atomics to prepare for the next NASA CLPS task order," Kyle Acierno, CEO
of ispace US, a Denver-based subsidiary that the company established
late last year, said in the same statement.
"With nearly 30 team members strong [at ispace US], we continue to
grow in the US and are focused on broadening our collaboration with
American partners," Acierno said.
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