Japan's 'Moon Sniper' attempts historic lunar landing

TOKYO, Japan — Japan's "Moon Sniper" spacecraft is preparing to make a historic lunar touchdown at midnight on Saturday using pinpoint technology the country hopes will lead to success where many have failed.

With its Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) mission, Japan wants to become the fifth nation to pull off a fiendishly tricky soft landing on the Moon's rocky surface.

Only the United States, the Soviet Union, China and India have accomplished the feat so far.

But the Japanese lander -- equipped with a rolling probe developed by a major toy company -- has been designed to do so with unprecedented precision.

The descent of the lightweight SLIM craft, nicknamed the "Moon Sniper" by space agency JAXA, is scheduled to start at midnight Japan time on Saturday (1500 GMT Friday).

If all goes to plan, the touchdown will be around 20 minutes later.

The craft is targeting an area within 100 metres (330 feet) of a spot on the surface, far tighter than the usual landing zone of several kilometres.

Success would reverse Japan's fortunes in space after two failed lunar missions and recent rocket failures, including explosions after take-off.

It would also echo the triumph of India's low-cost space programme in August, when the country became the first to land an uncrewed craft near the Moon's largely unexplored south pole.

SLIM will try to land on a crater where the Moon's mantle -- the deep inner layer beneath its crust -- is believed to be accessible at the surface.

"The rocks exposed here are crucial in the search for the origins of the Moon and the Earth," Tomokatsu Morota, an associate professor at the University of Tokyo specialising in lunar and planetary exploration, told AFP.

JAXA has already made a pinpoint landing on an asteroid, but the challenge is greater on the Moon, where gravity is stronger.

With just one shot at landing, the pressure is on -- and the craft's precision is vital in the attempt to "land on an area surrounded by rocks", which it will examine with a camera, Morota said.

With its "sniper" technology, Japan hopes to "showcase its presence" in space and provide pivotal information on the Moon's history, according to Morota.

The mission