Watch Live! Japan's first-ever soft lunar landing attempt with SLIM spacecraft

Japan is about to make moon-exploration history! The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is targeting Jan. 19 for the lunar landing of its robotic SLIM (“Smart Lander for Investigating Moon“) spacecraft. The plan calls for SLIM to begin its descent toward the moon on Jan. 19 around 10 a.m. EST (1500 GMT; 12 a.m. on Jan. 20 Japanese Standard Time). Touchdown — which would mark the first-ever soft lunar landing for a Japanese spacecraft — is scheduled to occur about 20 minutes later.