Russian Luna-25 spaceship crashes into moon, ending nation's first space mission since Cold War
20 August 2023, 10:27 | Updated: 20 August 2023, 10:39
Russia's first space mission for 47 years failed miserably after its Luna-25 spaceship spun out of control and crashed into the moon.
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The unmanned vessel was supposed to make a soft landing on the south pole of the moon.
But it "ceased to exist" after losing direction and smashing into the surface.
A spokesperson for Russian space agency Roskosmos said it lost control with Luna-25 during its pre-landing orbit.
They said: "The apparatus moved into an unpredictable orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the Moon."
Read more: Russia to quit International Space Station after 2024 as Kremlin plans to build rival
Luna-25 was racing India's Chandrayaan-3 spaceship to the moon's south pole.
Chandrayaan-3 is expected to reach the moon next week.
No vessel has been able to land on the moon's south pole.
