Rise and shine: Japanese moon probe back to work after sun reaches its solar panels

A Japanese moon explorer is up and running Monday after several tense days without the sunlight it needs to generate power

TOKYO -- A Japanese moon explorer is up and running Monday after several tense days without the sunlight it needs to generate power.

Japan's first lunar mission hit its target in a precision touchdown on Jan. 20, but landed the wrong way up, leaving its solar panels unable to see the sun.

But with the dawn of the lunar day, it appears that the probe has power.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, said Monday that it successfully established communication with the probe Sunday night, and the craft has resumed its mission, taking pictures of the Moon’s surface and transmitting them to the Earth.

After a last-minute engine failure caused the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, to make a rougher-than-planned landing, JAXA used battery power to gather as much data as possible about the touchdown and the probe's surroundings. The craft was then turned off to wait the sun to rise higher in the lunar sky in late January.