Japanese space mission to the Moon

Ispace Inc., a private Japanese firm, develops robotic rovers and landers for lunar missions. It is aiming to compete with space agencies and the private sector for transportation and exploration missions. These spacecraft, along with their accompanying vehicles, could allow clients to map and explore the natural resources of Earth’s nearest neighbor.

The company employs around 200 people in its offices in the United States, Luxembourg and Tokyo. The team of engineers, which was founded in 2010, had previously competed for the Google Lunar X Prize.

After more than a decade in research and development, yesterday ispace launched Hakuto R Mission 1 into space using a Falcon 9 Block 5 partially reusable rocket. The spacecraft is now performing orbital maneuvers that will take it up to 1.5 million km (932, 000 miles) away from Earth before reaching the Moon in April 2023.

Source:
https://www.futuretimeline.net/blog/2022/12/12-japan-moon-mission-future-timeline.htm