Published on September 2, 2023 at 8:45 p.m.
The Russian spacecraft Luna-25 crashed on the moon on August 19 after an incident during a maneuver before landing.
A small crater is created
According to the American space agency, it was the impact of the Russian Luna-25 probe that crashed on the lunar surface.
In a press release, NASA says the new crater was identified based on information from the Russian space agency about the possible location of the impact. By comparing photos taken in June 2022 with those after the impact, we can see the presence of a new small crater. The probability that it was caused by the failed lunar landing of Luna-25 is significantly higher than the hypothesis of a natural projectile impact.
The impact of the Russian probe crash to the right of the largest crater. Photo: NASA
A still unexplained failure
The crater is about 10 meters in diameter and is located about 400 km from the planned lunar landing site. The photo was taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter probe, which has been orbiting the moon since 2009.
According to the Russian space agency Roscosmos, the causes of the crash of the 800 kilogram probe are still unclear and are being investigated. The last successful Russian lunar mission was almost 50 years ago.
The Russian lunar probe Luna-25 has crashed. Illustration: NPO Lavochkin