Japan's Moon explorer to end service after unexpectedly long survival

The Japanese Moon explorer that landed on the lunar surface in January is expected to end its service after recent attempts to contact it proved unsuccessful, the country's space agency said Thursday."It is highly unlikely it will respond in the future," the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said of the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, that has remained in operation for longer than anticipated, surprisingly surviving three cold lunar nights.JAXA said it sought to resume communication with the explorer last month and over the past seven days, but it has been unable to confirm a…READ FULL ARTICLE