Moon Age Daydream: Modern Lunar Exploration

AFP/APP
Tokyo: Japan, whose unmanned “sniper” probe will attempt a lunar landing on Saturday, is one of many countries and private companies launching new missions to the Moon.
It is a feat so far only achieved by four nations—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, and most recently, India—with spacecraft often losing communication or crash-landing.
The modern lunar exploration programs include plans to put people on the Moon for the first time since 1972 and eventually establish bases there.