Selene-2

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Selene-2
Organization	JAXA
Mission type	Orbiter, Lander, Rover, Penetrator
Satellite of	Moon
Launch date	2012
Launch vehicle	H-2A
NSSDC ID	SELENE2
Mass	30-kilogram rover
Orbital elements
Inclination	°

Selene-2 is a proposed Japanese moon lander as a successor to the 2007 SELENE (Kaguya) moon orbiter. JAXA hopes to put this mission into its budget for next fiscal year and to launch Selene-2 either in 2012 or 2013 with the H-2A. It is planned that Selene-2 will also carry a rover. The proposed landing side is the sunlit portion of the Polar region. However the exact configuration has not yet been announced.

The main objectives of the mission are:

• Test of landing technology
• Investigating the origin of the moon

[edit] Penetrators

One option JAXA is investigating now, is to integrate a small data relay satellite and penetrators into the mission. [1] Originally the penetrators were supposed to be part of the LUNAR-A mission, but development took more time than planned. Despite all these troubles JAXA is making progress now with its penetrator technology. The final test is anticipated for July 2007.

[edit] Mission Timeline

Tests of the landing gear were already done during 1999. [2]

[edit] Links

• Manabu Kato, The Current Status of the Japanese Penetrator Mission Lunar-A, ISAS/JAXA, (date unknown). Information about the penetrator tests.
• Tatsuaki Hashimoto, Robotic Lunar Exploration Scenario -- JAXA Plan --, May 2006. Selene-2 Overview.

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