The Luna-25, Russia’s ambitious lunar mission, has failed after the spacecraft spun out of control and crashed into the Moon’s surface. As the country’s national space corporation, ROSCOSMOS revealed the terrible tragedy, it marked a disappointing end to Russia’s first moon trip in nearly half a century.
Russia’s Luna-25 Crashes on the Moon
On Saturday, the Luna-25 spacecraft experienced a catastrophic malfunction immediately after a vital manoeuvre while it was being positioned into its pre-landing orbit. Roskosmos confirmed in a statement that contact with the spacecraft was lost due to an unforeseen malfunction during this key phase of the mission.
“The apparatus moved into an unpredictable orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the Moon,” Roskosmos said in an official statement, communicating the tragic outcome of the Luna-25 mission. This quick and unexpected conclusion represents a serious setback for Russia’s space exploration objectives and has stunned the scientific and space communities throughout the world.
“On August 19, in accordance with the flight programme of the Luna-25 spacecraft, it was planned to issue an impulse to form its pre-landing elliptical orbit,” Roskosmos said in an official statement on Telegram. Communication with the Luna-25 spacecraft was lost around 14:57 Moscow time.
“A specially formed interdepartmental commission will deal with the issues of clarifying the reasons for the loss of the Moon,” the statement continued.
About Luna-25
The Luna-25 mission was crucial in Russia’s aspirations to revitalise its lunar exploration programme. The spacecraft was meant to land near the Moon’s south pole, a location of considerable interest to scientists because of its potential for containing water ice—a valuable resource that could be critical for future human expeditions to the Moon and beyond.
The unsuccessful mission was intended to act as a forerunner for more advanced lunar endeavours, clearing the way for the impending Luna-26 and Luna-27 missions, which were supposed to carry out more complex objectives such as collecting and returning lunar soil samples.
The Luna-25 mission was originally envisioned as a key milestone in Russia’s space exploration story, a long-awaited return to lunar exploration after nearly five decades since the last successful Soviet lunar mission. The tragedy not only crushed these hopes but also aroused concerns about the technical problems and unexpected obstacles that space organisations encounter when pursuing such large projects.
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