Russia

Despite Luna-25 Crash, Russia Gained Invaluable Experience of Flying to Moon - Roscosmos

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia's Luna-25 automatic landing module crashed because its engine did not turn of normally and worked 127 seconds instead of 84 during a transition to the pre-landing orbit, Yuri Borisov, the head of Russian state space corporation Roscosmos, said on Monday, adding that the module crashed into the Moon surface.
Sputnik
"Unfortunately, the engine shutdown did not occur normally, in accordance with the cyclogram, but according to a time cutoff, and instead of the planned 84 seconds, it worked for 127 seconds. This was the main cause of the accident of the device," Borisov told the Rossiya 24 broadcaster.
According to the official, the transition to the pre-landing orbit took place in a radio communication zone, and experts knew everything about the spacecraft before its crash.

"Preliminary ballistic calculations showed that due to the abnormal operation of the corrective propulsion system, the device switched to an open lunar orbit and, in fact, crashed into the surface of the Moon," Borisov clarified.

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Luna-25: Launch of First Lunar Mission in Modern Russian History

Luna-25 Commission to Figure Out Why Mission Failed

The commission on the crash of Russia's Luna-25 automatic landing module has started working and will have to figure out in detail what led to its failure, the head of Roscosmos stated.
"All stages of the flight are carefully documented, the main reason [behind the crash] as I told you is the abnormal operation of the corrective engine. But we will have to figure out in detail what led to this, and I am sure that we will receive all the necessary data during the work of the emergency commission. It has already been appointed and has begun work. I think that in the very near future we will get the necessary results, of course, we will take this into account when implementing the next missions," Borisov stressed.
The space agency head added that, hopefully, the next lunar missions "will be successful." In addition, Borisov highlighted that Russia gained a lot of experience despite the mission's failure.

"We gained invaluable experience of flying to the Moon, launching a spacecraft into a circular lunar orbit, and conducting a number of scientific experiments," the official emphasized.

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Russia's Lunar Mission Luna-25 Transmits First Scientific Data to Earth - Roscosmos
At the same time, the Moon landing experience, gained in 1960s and 1970s, "has been pretty much lost", according to the Roscosmos head.

Russia Surely Needs to Participate in Lunar Race

Nevertheless, Russia definitely needs to participate in the Lunar race, Borisov pointed out.
"By no means should the lunar program be interrupted — this would be the worst decision. I think that the negative experience of interrupting the lunar program for almost 50 years is the main reason behind the failure [of the Luna-25 mission]," the official noted, adding that the race for the development of the Moon’s natural resources has begun.
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