Japanese Lunar Exploration Program 2007, after being delayed several times. SELENE-2, Japan's first lunar lander and rover, is expected to be launched in the 2020s. The program also includes a lunar sample return mission (SELENE-3), a mission to Mars to collect data for future manned expeditions (MELOS), participation in the Mars international sample return mission, and an advanced lander for future human missions to the Moon. The eventual goal is to participate in an international lunar outpost program, in which Japanese crews would stay on the lunar surface for a prolonged period of time and promote scientific research and environment utilization. SELENE (Selenological and
Explorer 31 Explorer 31 Explorer 31 (also called DME-A) was an American satellite launched as part of the Explorers program of NASA. Explorer 29 was launched on 29 November 1965 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, United States, with Thor Agena rocket. Explorer 31 was released along with the Canadian satellite Alouette 2. Explorer 31 was a small ionospheric observatory instrumented to make direct measurements of selected ionospheric parameters at the spacecraft. Since the spacecraft had no tape recorder, data could be observed at the spacecraft only when the spacecraft was in sight of the telemetry station and when commanded on. Experiments