New Moon Crater Likely Caused by Russia’s Luna 25 Mission
A new crater has been discovered on the moon, and it is believed to have been created by Russia’s uncrewed Luna 25 mission. Images taken by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter have revealed the fresh crater, providing evidence of the mission’s crash into the lunar surface.
The Luna 25 spacecraft, Russia’s first lunar lander in 47 years, launched on August 10 and was expected to land near the lunar south pole a couple of weeks later. However, communication with the spacecraft was disrupted when it tried to enter a pre-landing lunar orbit on August 19. Roscosmos, Russia’s space agency, reported an “emergency situation,” and later determined that engine failure was the probable cause of the crash.
Officials at Roscosmos shared an estimate of the impact point on August 21, which allowed the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter team to send commands to the spacecraft the following day to capture images of the crash site. The orbiter took images over a four-hour period on August 24, comparing them with photos taken before the crash in June 2022. These images confirmed the presence of a new crater near the estimated impact point, leading the orbiter team to conclude that it is likely the final resting spot of Luna 25.
The new crater measures 32.8 feet (10 meters) across and fell 248.5 miles (400 kilometers) short of Luna 25’s intended landing target. This discovery adds to the growing collection of impact craters on the moon, which have been identified using the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter since 2009. The orbiter’s previous images have captured the aftermath of other lunar missions, such as India’s Chandrayaan-2 in 2019.
The findings from this recent discovery provide valuable information for future lunar missions and contribute to the ongoing study of the moon’s surface. As space agencies continue to explore and investigate our closest celestial neighbor, new insights and discoveries will likely continue to arise.