Pick up to 4 missions to compare side-by-side. State lives in the URL — share the link and the comparison loads exactly as you left it.
Six nations have placed lunar orbiters since 2007 — a 4× increase in 15 years.
| Attribute | 🇯🇵 SELENE (Kaguya) SELenological and ENgineering Explorer Trust: Agency-primaryⓘ Last verified Remove × |
|---|---|
| Agency | JAXA |
| Status | Mission Complete |
| Mission type | Orbiter |
| Launch date | 2007-09-14 |
| End date | 2009-06-10 |
| Orbit | 100 km circular polar orbit (primary phase) |
| Mass | 2,855 kgas of [1]Main orbiter (2,230 kg) + Rstar relay sub-satellite (53 kg) + VRAD sub-satellite (52 kg) |
| Instruments | 15 instrumentsas of [1] |
| Key findings |
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| Outcome | JAXA's flagship lunar orbiter, second only to LRO in scientific output. SELENE performed a controlled impact on the lunar near-side in June 2009, with the impact flash confirmed by ground telescopes. Its terrain camera produced the most complete global DEM of the Moon prior to LOLA/LRO. |
All 11 lunar orbital missions with primary-source citations from NASA, ESA, JAXA, ISRO, CNSA, and NASA NSSDCA. Coverage spans Clementine (1994) through LRO (active 2026). Pure URL state — bookmark or share the link and the comparison reproduces exactly.