Science News Roundup: Japan launches 'moon sniper' lunar lander SLIM into space; 'Bizarre' long-legged bird-like dinosaur has scientists enthralled and more

Following is a summary of current science news briefs. Japan launches 'moon sniper' lunar lander SLIM into space Japan launched its lunar exploration spacecraft on Thursday aboard a homegrown H-IIA rocket, hoping to become the world's fifth country to land on the moon early next year.

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Japan launches 'moon sniper' lunar lander SLIM into space

Japan launched its lunar exploration spacecraft on Thursday aboard a homegrown H-IIA rocket, hoping to become the world's fifth country to land on the moon early next year. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said the rocket took off from Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan as planned and successfully released the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM). Unfavourable weather led to three postponements in a week last month.

'Bizarre' long-legged bird-like dinosaur has scientists enthralled

About 148 to 150 million years ago, a strange pheasant-sized and bird-like dinosaur with elongated legs and arms built much like wings inhabited southeastern China, with a puzzling anatomy suggesting it either was a fast runner or lived a lifestyle like a modern wading bird. Scientists said on Wednesday they have unearthed in Fujian Province the fossil of a Jurassic Period dinosaur they named Fujianvenator prodigiosus - a creature that sheds light on a critical evolutionary stage in the origin of birds.

Japan's 'moon sniper' to test precision landing - and Tokyo's space ambitions

Japan aims to become the fifth country to land a spacecraft on the lunar surface with the launch of a low-cost "moon sniper" on Thursday that will test precision landing technology designed to further Tokyo’s space goals. The launch comes weeks after India became the first country to land on the moon's south pole, sparking an outpouring of national pride and highlighting a new space race that features the private sector.