Kuulento was Russia’s first since 1976.
The Russian Luna-25 lunar lander has been destroyed after crashing into the surface of the Moon, says the Russian space agency Roskosmos. The unmanned craft was supposed to land on the Moon on Monday.
According to Roskosmos, contact with the lander was lost on Saturday. According to preliminary information, the lander was completely destroyed in a collision with the surface of the Moon.
The space organization says that an investigation will be launched into the causes of the collision.
The lander was part of Russia’s effort to restart the Soviet-era moon program. The lunar lander was supposed to operate on the surface of the Moon for a year, during which it would, among other things, have taken samples from the lunar surface and performed scientific experiments.
The lander was to attempt a landing in the Moon’s south pole region. The vast majority of previous landers sent to the Moon have landed on the equatorial regions of the Moon.
Director of Roskosmos Yuri Borisov had previously estimated that the probability of the hearing being successful was approximately 70 percent.
The moon program was launched despite the sanctions
It was Russia’s first hearing flight since 1976.
The launch was the first in Russia’s new moon program, launched by the country at a time when Roscosmos has been isolated from its usual partners due to Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine.
According to Russia, the equipment of the European Space Agency Esa had been replaced by Russian-made equipment on the Luna-25 flight.
Due to the Western boycott, Russia has also increased its space cooperation with China.