Russian space agency chief blames decades of inactivity for Luna-25 lander's crash on the moon

Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft crashed into the moon after engine failure, due to a decades-long pause in lunar exploration. Roscosmos Director General Yury Borisov said the mission was to ensure long-term defense capability and technological sovereignty. India and China have also attempted to land on the moon's south pole, with India's 2019 attempt ending in a crash.

The head of Russia's space agency said on August 21 that the Luna-25 spacecraft crashed into the moon after its engines failed to shut down correctly, and he blamed the country's decades-long pause in lunar exploration for the mishap.

The pilotless Luna-25 had been scheduled to land on August 21 while aiming to become the first spacecraft to touch down on the south pole of the moon, an area where scientists believe important reserves of frozen water and precious elements may exist.

Roscosmos Director General Yury Borisov said the spacecraft's engines were turned on over the weekend to put Luna-25 into a “pre-landing orbit" but did not shut down properly, plunging the lander onto the moon.

“Instead of the planned 84 seconds, it worked for 127 seconds. This was the main reason for the emergency,” Borisov told Russian state news channel Russia 24.

Roscosmos had contact with the spacecraft until 2:57 p.m. local time Saturday, when communication was lost and “the device passed into an open lunar orbit and crashed into the surface of the moon,” he said.

The lunar mission was Russia's first since 1976, when it was part of the Soviet Union. Only three countries have managed successful moon landings: the Soviet Union, the United States and China.

“The negative experience of interrupting the lunar program for almost 50 years is the main reason for the failures,” Borisov said, adding “it would be the worst decision ever” for Russia to end the program now.