Japan became the fifth country to reach the moon after its spacecraft landed on the lunar surface

PM Modi congratulates Japanese counterpart, space agency on lunar landing

Vartha Bharati | 20-01-2024 | 23:21:00 IST

A real size model of the palm-sized Lunar Excursion Vehicle 2 (LEV-2) at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Sagamihara Campus | PC: PTI

New Delhi, Jan 20: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday congratulated his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida and the country's aerospace agency for landing a spacecraft on the Moon, and said India looks to cooperation in space exploration.

He was responding to a post on X by Kishida announcing the successful moon landing.

Modi said, "Congratulations Prime Minister @Kishida230 and everyone at JAXA on achieving Japan's first soft Moon landing. India looks forward to our cooperation in space exploration between @isro and JAXA."

JAXA is short form of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

Japan became the fifth country in history to reach the moon when its spacecraft landed on the lunar surface early Saturday, officials said. But an issue with the power supply means that the mission could be in jeopardy.

Japanese officials also said they needed more time to analyse whether the spacecraft, which wasn't carrying astronauts, made a pinpoint landing one of the priorities of the mission.

India had last year successfully completed its lunar mission.

Congratulations Prime Minister @Kishida230 and everyone at JAXA on achieving Japan’s first soft Moon landing. India looks forward to our cooperation in space exploration between @isro and JAXA. https://t.co/lvQ99iltDH

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 20, 2024

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Leh-bound SpiceJet plane faces engine issue; returns to national capital

24-02-2026 ¦ 24-02-2026 IST

Image Credit: PTI

New Delhi (PTI): A Leh-bound SpiceJet aircraft returned to the national capital due to an engine issue on Tuesday morning, according to a source.

There were around 150 people on board the Boeing 737 aircraft that was operating the flight SG121, the source added.

When contacted, a SpiceJet spokesperson said a flight operating from Delhi to Leh on Tuesday returned to Delhi after experiencing a technical issue.

"The aircraft landed safely in Delhi, and all passengers were disembarked normally," the spokesperson said in a statement.

The source said the aircraft suffered an engine issue.