Ispace's Lunar Lander Set to Touch Down on the Moon: Milestone for Japan's Space Exploration

Japanese Startup ispace Poised for Historic Lunar Landing

Tokyo-listed rocket company ispace is set to make history as its lunar lander, RESILIENCE, prepares to touch down on the surface of the moon tomorrow morning in Japan Standard Time. The landing is expected to occur at 4:17 am JST (3:17 pm ET) near the center of the Mare Frigoris (Sea of Cold), located at 60.5 degrees north latitude and 4.6 degrees west longitude.

ispace will stream the landing event starting from 3:10 JST (2:10 pm ET) in both Japanese and English. If successful, this would mark the first time a private Japanese company has achieved a successful moon landing.

Tying Crypto and Sci-Fi Together

Meanwhile, the makers of the upcoming sci-fi TV show "Space Nation" have hired a firm to create a bespoke artificial intelligence (AI) model to generate backdrops, spaceships, and more for the series, which is tied into an Ethereum game. Based on the crypto MMORPG Space Nation Online, which runs on Ethereum layer-2 network Immutable zkEVM, the show has recently begun development under the leadership of executive producers Roland Emmerich and Marco Weber.

Overcoming Challenges and Setting Ambitious Goals

Takeshi Hakamada, the founder and CEO of ispace, expressed pride in announcing the company's second attempt at landing on the moon, following a failed HAKUTO-R Mission 1 two years ago when they lost communication with the lander just before touchdown. Hakamada stated, "Since that time, we have drawn on the experience, using it as motivation to move forward with resolve. We are now at the dawn of our next attempt to make history."

Founded in 2010, ispace has grown to over 280 employees and has laid out ambitious long-term plans for its lunar exploration, including constructing a lunar settlement dubbed "Moon Valley" by 2040. The company's vision includes 1,000 permanent moon inhabitants and 10,000 annual visitors, as well as the creation of a thriving "cislunar economy" between the Earth and the moon.

Hakamada emphasized, "We view the success of the lunar landing as merely a stepping stone toward that goal."

The Broader Race for Space

ispace is part of a broader wave of private-sector interest in space and interplanetary travel. Last week, Elon Musk unveiled SpaceX's vision to establish a self-sustaining colony on Mars by the end of the next decade.

While the private space industry continues to make strides, significant technological hurdles remain. NASA aims to return astronauts to the moon by 2027, while China targets a manned moon landing by 2030, both of which have faced delays. Uncrewed probe missions, however, have surged in recent years, with successful landings by private U.S. firms such as Intuitive Machines and Firefly Aerospace.