JAXA
IKAROS Wakes Up From Hibernation Mode for the 4th Time (Press Release - April 30)
The IKAROS seemed to wake up from its hibernation mode in mid-March 2015, and JAXA searched for it based on its attitude and orbit prediction to receive its radio waves. On April 23 (Thursday), we successfully found the IKAROS, which is flying at a distance of about 120 million kilometers (75 million miles) from the Earth.
We will continue to receive data from the IKAROS until May to confirm its condition and analyze the information.
The IKAROS, launched in May 2010, completed its mission, and is now revolving around the sun about every 10 months. Power generation is insufficient for seven months out of 10 so the IKAROS goes into hibernation mode for this period by shutting down instruments. For the remaining three months, the IKAROS is awake with enough power so that we can receive data from it.
Source: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
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