March 12, 2025 — Tokyo, Japan
During the IM-2 Athena mission, the lunar rover Yaoki successfully operated on the surface of the Moon, marking yet another historic achievement for Dymon and JAOPS. Following a challenging soft landing, the mission began in an unexpectedly difficult configuration due to the lander's final orientation.
Yaoki’s operation officially started March 7 at 02:17:51 UTC and the final command was sent at 04:32:30 UTC. Despite the complexities posed by the landing position, Yaoki successfully activated, executed commands, and transmitted valuable data for over two hours, pushing the boundaries for small private rovers on the lunar surface.
The rover was operated using Yamcs, an open-source mission control software platform, configured and controlled by the JAOPS team.
Although Yaoki was originally designed and tested to be deployed from any position, the combination of power constraints from the lander, the incorrect landing orientation, and the extremely low temperatures—due to the lack of power for heaters in this particular configuration—ultimately prevented Yaoki from exiting the deployer platform.
Despite these challenges, Yaoki operators carefully tested all possible subsystems and command configurations to raise the technology readiness of the Yaoki platform. In total, 25 images were downlinked, and more than two hours of continuous telemetry data were acquired, setting a new record for the smallest private rover operating on the Moon’s surface.
Picture taken by the Yaoki rover on the Moon showing the dark lunar surface around the lander, the bright crater rim (top left) and one of the IM-2 lander's legs (bottom)
Yaoki continued sending telemetry and images nominally until 04:32 UTC when the IM-2 lander terminated all payload communications.
The mission’s success was made possible by a highly coordinated and dedicated team, including:
Flight Director: Shinichiro Nakajima
Rover Controller: Louis Burtz
Flight Software Lead: Toshiki Nakamura
Communications & Ground Systems: Alejandro Sela
CEO Comments
Shinichiro Nakajima, CEO of Dymon, commented:
"Yaoki’s performance under such difficult conditions is a testament to the resilience of the rover’s design and the exceptional teamwork between Dymon and JAOPS. Even though we faced numerous challenges, we were able to demonstrate successful lunar operations for a small private rover, achieving significant technological milestones. I am incredibly proud of our team and our partners."
Alejandro Sela, CEO of JAOPS, stated:
"This mission showcased the importance of adaptability and international collaboration. Despite the odds, we managed to operate Yaoki, gather critical data, and break new ground for future small rover missions. The seamless cooperation between JAOPS and Dymon, combined with innovative use of open-source tools such as Yamcs, allowed us to maximize the mission’s success while making improvements that will benefit the community. This achievement marks a crucial step for both organizations as we continue to pioneer lunar exploration."
