Exploration of the Moon with the Hiten spacecraft, becoming the third country to place an object in orbit around the Moon. The spacecraft released the Hagoromo probe into lunar orbit, but the transmitter failed, thereby preventing further scientific use of the spacecraft. In September 2007, Japan launched the SELENE spacecraft, with the objectives "to obtain scientific data of the lunar origin and evolution and to develop the technology for the future lunar exploration", according to the JAXA official website. The European Space Agency launched a small, low-cost lunar orbital probe called SMART 1 on September 27, 2003. SMART 1's primary goal was to take
Orbital Sciences Corporation air-launched rockets that delivered satellites into orbit; missile defense systems that were used as interceptor and target vehicles; and human-rated space systems for Earth-orbit, lunar and other missions. Orbital also provided satellite subsystems and space-related technical services to government agencies and laboratories. On April 29, 2014, Orbital Sciences announced that it would merge with Alliant Techsystems to create a new company called Orbital ATK, Inc. The merger was completed on February 9, 2015 and Orbital Sciences ceased to exist as an independent entity. On September 18, 2017, Northrop Grumman announced plans to purchase Orbital ATK for $7.8 billion in cash