KAGUYA lunar explorer (aka SELENE) Options

[Rakhir]

SELENE has now a nickname : KAGUYA.
http://www.jaxa.jp/topics/2007/06_e.html

Edit :
And Emily searched for the origin of the name
http://www.planetary.org/blog/article/00000996/

[SpaceListener]

At the beginning, JAXA says that Kaguya is mainly as an experimental spacecraft to prove new technologies.. Thus, I presume that this is one of the low-profile public relations' reasons since this kind of mission has high risk of success. Hope, that all new technologies would run fine after many past setback lessons.

[Norm Hartnett]

At the beginning, JAXA says that Kaguya is mainly as an experimental spacecraft to prove new technologies.. Thus, I presume that this is one of the low-profile public relations' reasons since this kind of mission has high risk of success. Hope, that all new technologies would run fine after many past setback lessons.

I am not sure that Kaguya can be characterized as an "experimental spacecraft to prove new technologies", except as all spacecraft are experimental. At 2 tons and half a billion dollars, carrying 15 cutting edge planetary exploration instruments, this craft is the equal of any flown to any planet. JAXA has stated that it is "the most sophisticated lunar exploration mission in the post-Apollo Era." and "the largest lunar mission since the Apollo program". This mission could be the crown jewel of Japan's planetary exploration efforts for some time to come.