Russia’s Luna-25 spacecraft has crashed into The Moon after it spun into an uncontrolled orbit. The mission was to be the first ever spacecraft to land on the South Pole of the moon. This is Russia’s first lunar mission since 1976, back when it was part of the Soviet Union.
Currently, only three governments have successfully landed on the moon: the Soviet Union, the United States, and China.
This pilotless spacecraft was built as part of a space race with India for who could land on the South Pole first. Scientists are interested in this region since they belive that permanently shadowed polar craters may contain frozen water in the rocks. As well as the possibility of precious elements that could be used for air and rocket fuel. There is no confirmation if they plan to test if it is made out of cheese.
Luna-25 was launched on August 10th, against India’s Chandrayaan-3 that hit the skies on July 14th. Despite the different launch dates, both crafts were expected to land between August 21st and 23rd. Luna-25 set to land on the 21st, beating the Chandrayaan-3.
Sadly, Russia lost contact with the Luna-25 on the 19th after it ran into difficulties and reported an “abnormal situation.” “The apparatus moved into an unpredictable orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the moon,” the Roscosmos space agency said in a statement. Almost the exact same thing happened with India’s attempt to land on the south pole in 2019.
Roscosmos wanted to show Russia “is a state capable of delivering a payload to the moon,” and to “ensure Russia’s guaranteed access to the moon’s surface.” This is part of an ongoing passion project for President Vladimir Putin, to make Russia a space superpower.
The craft was originally supposed to carry a small moon rover. But that part of the mission was scrapped to reduce the weight of the Luna-25, for improved reliability.
India’s Chandrayaan-3 is expected to land on the 23rd, and we hope it fairs better. We’ll keep you posted on updates about the moon (and how Pink Floyd has no claim to the darkside of it) as they develop.
