Against all odds, Japan more than a week after she fell onto the surface of the moon, but now she has gone into sleep for the entire lunar night and she may not be able to wake up again. The SLIM team of the Japanese space agency, JAXA, shared on Thursday the last image taken by the lander at the Shioli lunar crater before dusk, as darkness encroached. Lunar night lasts the equivalent of two Earth weeks and can be colder than 200 degrees Fahrenheit.
Last night (01/31~02/01) we sent a command to turn on #THINjust in case, but with no response, we confirmed that SLIM had entered a dormant state. This is the last scene of the Moon taken by SLIM before dusk. #HappyAfterMoon #JAXA pic.twitter.com/V1iAUoxJFK
– 小型月着陸実証機SLIM (@SLIM_JAXA) February 1, 2024
The team confirmed that the solar-powered lander is in a dormant state that will last at least through the lunar night. His chances of resuming his activities afterwards are not great, but then again, it has already surprised us once. “Although SLIM was not designed for harsh lunar nights, we plan to try to operate again starting in mid-February, when the Sun shines on SLIM's solar cells again,” wrote l team on site. . If this really is SLIM's last photo, it sure is creepy.