Japanese lunar mission launch postponed
Posted: Sun, Jul 22, 2007, 11:17 AM ET (1517 GMT)
Next month's scheduled launch of a Japanese lunar probe has been postponed to correct a technical problem with the spacecraft. The Japanese space agency JAXA announced Friday that the launch of the Kaguya (formerly SELENE) spacecraft, scheduled for mid-August, would be postponed for an unspecified time. In a statement, JAXA reported that engineers had found that a component on another satellite was installed incorrectly, leading them to check Kaguya and find that a similar component was also incorrectly installed on two subsatellites that are part of the overall Kaguya spacecraft. No timetable for rescheduling the launch has been announced. Kaguya is an orbiter designed to study a wide variety of characteristics of the Moon, including its surface composition, gravitational field, and the particle environment.
Next month's scheduled launch of a Japanese lunar probe has been postponed to correct a technical problem with the spacecraft. The Japanese space agency JAXA announced Friday that the launch of the Kaguya (formerly SELENE) spacecraft, scheduled for mid-August, would be postponed for an unspecified time. In a statement, JAXA reported that engineers had found that a component on another satellite was installed incorrectly, leading them to check Kaguya and find that a similar component was also incorrectly installed on two subsatellites that are part of the overall Kaguya spacecraft. No timetable for rescheduling the launch has been announced. Kaguya is an orbiter designed to study a wide variety of characteristics of the Moon, including its surface composition, gravitational field, and the particle environment.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Sunday, March 9
Two moon missions touched down on the lunar surface. How they unfolded was a stark contrast
CNN — 9:20 am ET (1320 GMT) China’s progress on ‘game-changing’ space technology raises US concerns about closing gap
South China Morning Post — 9:18 am ET (1318 GMT) Fleet Space unveils new global HQ and space tech hyper factory
Asia Pacific Defence Reporter — 9:14 am ET (1314 GMT) How Las Cruces lost the Spaceport America Cup
Albuquerque Journal — 9:13 am ET (1313 GMT) NASA launches plush mascot contest for next moon mission
Huntsville Times — 9:11 am ET (1311 GMT) |
