The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) announced that the first Japanese lander on the moon responded to a signal from Earth, which means that it unexpectedly survived a second lunar night amid sub-zero temperatures and reconnected with Earth.
The agency described the signal it received on Sunday evening as a “miracle” because the vehicle was not designed to stay on the moon during the night, when temperatures drop to minus 170 degrees Celsius.
The lunar exploration vehicle “Slim” landed on the surface of the moon on January 20, making Japan the fifth country to succeed in placing a spacecraft on the surface of the moon.
But the rover landed in the wrong direction, as its solar panels initially couldn’t see the sun, and had to be turned off within hours.
On the eighth day, the spacecraft regained its power after landing when the sun rose.
The “Slim” rover collected geological data from moon rocks, before returning to stationary mode in late January, waiting to spend another night on the moon.
JAXA said the response to the signal was short because it was still “lunar midday,” and the spacecraft was at an extremely high temperature, around 100 degrees Celsius.
The agency is now preparing to make contact again when the vehicle cools down.
Scientists hope to find clues about the origin of the Moon by comparing the mineral compositions of its rocks with those found on Earth.
