The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has announced that it has re-established contact with its Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) spacecraft lander after it powered back on. The lander could not generate power upon landing on the lunar surface, quickly exhausting its battery power. JAXA had noted that its chances of recovering SLIM would increase as the sunlight illumination condition improves with time. This has consequently cemented Japan's position as the fifth country to soft-land on the moon, joining the USA, China, the former Soviet Union, and India.
