Japanese company aims to be first private business to put lander on moon

Tokyo’s ispace company put its own spacecraft into orbit around the moon a month ago.

A Japanese company is about to attempt what no other private business has done: land on the moon.

The 7-foot lander is carrying a mini lunar rover for the United Arab Emirates and a toylike robot from Japan designed to roll around in the moon dust. (File)

Tokyo’s ispace company put its own spacecraft into orbit around the moon a month ago. On Tuesday, flight controllers will direct the craft, named Hakuto, Japanese for white rabbit, to descend from 60 miles (100 kilometers) high and land.

The 7-foot lander is carrying a mini lunar rover for the United Arab Emirates and a toylike robot from Japan designed to roll around in the moon dust.

Hakuto took a long, roundabout route to the moon following its December liftoff, beaming back photos of Earth along the way.

Only three governments have successfully landed on the moon: Russia, the United States and China. An Israeli nonprofit tried to land on the moon in 2019, but its spacecraft was destroyed on impact.