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| Courtesy of JAXA/NHK |
On September 14th, 2007, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched the second Japanese lunar explorer, Kaguya. Kaguya was launched by an H-IIA Launch Vehicle from the Tanegashima Space Center (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. has a special page dedicated to the H-IIA No. 13, which was the rocket used for the Kaguya mission).
Kaguya shared the journey to the Moon with two smaller satellites, Okina and Okuna. Once in lunar orbit, Kaguya released the small satellites on elliptical orbits around the Moon. Okina and Okuna play the role of orbiting radio transmitters, relaying the data from Kaguya back to Earth in real time when Kaguya is above the far side of the Moon.
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| Courtesy of JAXA/NHK |
The instruments onboard the spacecraft have measured the composition and the topography of the lunar surface for more than one year.
Mapping of the lunar magnetic field was also performed.
The NHK HDTV cameras on Kaguya recorded stunning movies of the Earth rising and setting over the lunar surface. The movies are now available on JAXA’s web site.
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