Probe Due To Arrive In Early October

Japan is heading to the moon. Early Friday morning, local time, Japan's first lunar orbiter launched successfully from the small island of Tanegashima, off the southern tip of Kyushu Island.

The "Kaguya" probe -- also known as SELENE -- represents the largest mission to investigate the lunar surface since the Apollo program ended in 1972, according to Agence-France Presse. The probe carries two small satellites to go into orbit around the moon and measure lunar magnetic and gravitational fields.

The moonbound probe separated from its H-2A rocket booster after 45 minutes after launch, according to AFP.

"We successfully launched the rocket and released the orbiter from the rocket," said Eriko Sunada, a spokeswoman for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) in Tokyo.

It has been a tough road for Kaguya, which is named for a beautiful moon princess in Japanese folklore. The mission has been plagued with technical problems for several years; as ANN reported, the mission even faced cancellation earlier this year.

The probe will orbit Earth several times to gather speed, before heading for a lunar rendezvous in early October, JAXA officials said.

FMI: www.jaxa.jp/index_e.html