Japan s ispace counts down to second moon landing attempt on June 6

TOKYO - Japanese startup ispace aims to become the first non-US company to achieve a controlled moon landing as it prepares for the touchdown of its second uncrewed spacecraft on June 6, two years after its inaugural mission ended in failure.

Tokyo-based ispace hopes to join US firms Intuitive Machines and Firefly Aerospace, which have accomplished commercial landings since 2024 amid an intensifying global race for the moon that includes state-run missions from China and India.

The mission also highlights broad public- and private-sector expectations from Japan, which remains committed to lunar exploration as part of Nasas Artemis moon programme, despite mounting uncertainty about its future as President Donald Trump reshapes US space policies.

A moon landing is not a dream but it has become a reality, ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada has said.

The companys first lunar lander in April 2023 crashed onto the moons surface due to a software issue that incorrectly assessed its altitude during descent over precipitous terrain.

Its second lander, named Resilience, in January shared a SpaceX rocket launch with Fireflys Blue Ghost lander.

Blue Ghost took a faster trajectory to the moon and touched down successfully in March.

Currently circling about 100km above the lunar surface, Resilience carries a rover built by ispaces Luxembourg subsidiary and payloads worth a total of US$16 million (S$20.57 million),including scientific instruments from Japanese firms and a Taiwanese university.

After June 6s landing on Mare Frigoris, a lunar sea relatively close to the moons north pole, scheduled for 4.17am Japan time (3.17am Singapore time),the 2.3m high lander and the microwave-sized rover are tasked to capture images of regolith, the moons fine-grained surface material.

If successful, ispace said it will transfer the ownership of the collected material to Nasa to fulfil what it says would be the worlds first