Japan’s ispace loses communication with moon lander after touchdown attempt

TOKYO — Japanese company ispace said it has not been able to establish communication with its uncrewed moon lander following its lunar touchdown attempt on Friday, two years after its failed inaugural mission.

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

Resilience, ispace’s second lunar lander, targeted Mare Frigoris, a basaltic plain about 900 km (560 miles) from the moon’s north pole.

The company’s live-streamed flight data showed Resilience’s altitude suddenly falling down to zero shortly before the planned touchdown time of 4:17 a.m. on Friday, Japanese time following an hour-long descent from lunar orbit.

“We haven’t been able to confirm” communication, and control centre members will “continuously attempt to communicate with the lander,” the company said in the broadcast. Footage from the control room showed nervous faces of ispace engineers.

The status of Resilience remains unclear, and ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada will hold a press conference about the outcome of the mission at 9 a.m., the company said.