In a historic milestone for private space exploration, Japanese startup Dymon Co. has launched its ultra-compact moon rover, Yaoki, marking the world's first private lunar exploration mission.
The rover was sent into space on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, according to local media reports.
Yaoki, weighing just 498 grams and measuring approximately 14 centimeters in length and width with a height of 8 centimeters, is set to reach the lunar south pole in early March. Named after the Japanese proverb "nana korobi, ya oki"—meaning "fall seven times, get up eight"—the rover is designed to repeatedly right itself if it tips over, symbolizing resilience in the face of challenges.
Around 50 spectators gathered at the Space Travelium TeNQ museum in Tokyo to watch a live broadcast of the launch, underscoring the event's significance for Japan’s burgeoning private space sector. Once Yaoki lands on the lunar surface, it will spend approximately five days acclimatizing to the harsh temperature conditions before being deployed.
After this critical period, the rover will be remotely operated from Earth for several hours, during which it is expected to capture and transmit high-resolution images of the lunar terrain. Dymon Co. aims to pave the way for private companies to contribute to lunar exploration, setting a new precedent in the rapidly evolving space industry.
More than half of Indonesia’s individual stock market investors are below the age of 30, the Financial Services Authority (OJK) announced Monday, un...
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Monday expressed full backing for China’s initiative to set up a global artificial intelligence (AI) coope...
Colombian Senator and presidential candidate Miguel Uribe, who was shot in the head during a campaign rally two months ago, died early Monday at the a...
President Donald Trump announced the deployment of 800 National Guard troops to Washington and placed the city’s police under federal control, citin...
In an exclusive interview with AnewZ, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov reflected on the city’s resilience, the urgent task of reconstruction, and his dee...
A powerful eruption at Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano sent an ash plume more than 3,000 metres high on Sunday morning, prompting safety warnings from authorities.
Thousands gathered in Nagasaki on Saturday to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the city’s atomic bombing, with Mayor Shiro Suzuki warning that ongoing global conflicts risk bringing the world to the brink of nuclear war.
Thousands gathered in Hiroshima on Wednesday to mark 80 years since the city was devastated by an atomic bomb, as the mayor warned of the growing threat of nuclear weapons and urged global leaders to reflect on the lessons of the past.
Japan has secured a significant $6.5 billion defence deal with Australia to build next-generation warships, the Australian government announced on Tuesday.
The world’s biggest dance music festival faces an unexpected setback as a fire destroys its main stage, prompting a last-minute response from organisers determined to keep the party alive in Boom, Belgium.
A powerful eruption at Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano sent an ash plume more than 3,000 metres high on Sunday morning, prompting safety warnings from authorities.
According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck the Oaxaca region of Mexico on Saturday.
A resumption of Iraq’s Kurdish oil exports is not expected in the near term, sources familiar with the matter said on Friday, despite an announcement by Iraq’s federal government a day earlier stating that shipments would resume immediately.
Chinese automaker Chery has denied an industry-ministry audit that disqualified more than $53 million in state incentives for thousands of its electric and hybrid vehicles, insisting it followed official guidance and committed no fraud.
Scientists have discovered previously unknown communities of deep-sea creatures that survive by converting chemicals into energy, rather than feeding on organic matter, during dives into two of the Pacific Ocean’s deepest trenches.
The acting chief of the U.S. space agency NASA is expected to unveil a directive this week to build a nuclear reactor on the moon by 2030, according to U.S. media reports, as the United States seeks to strengthen its space presence amid growing competition from China and Russia.
Scientists in Norway have uncovered remains of more than 40 species from around 75,000 years ago, shedding new light on Ice Age life in Scandinavia.
Türkiye’s first domestically produced electric SUV, the Togg T10X, is expected to hit the German market by the end of 2025, German daily Bild reported.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday, sending an international crew of four astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard the Dragon spacecraft as part of NASA’s Crew-11 mission.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment