Japan's moon lander 'crashes AGAIN' in second botched mission as spaceship goes silent just moments before touchdown

06/06/2025 09:41

A JAPANESE spacecraft attempting a touchdown on the moon has crashed into the surface, the space company said.

The unmanned Resilience Moon Lander, from private Japanese astro company ispace, has been declared a failure for a second time.

AFP

The Resilience Lunar Lander a week before its launch[/caption]

AP

An image taken by a camera onboard the Resilience lander while circling the moon on Wednesday[/caption]

Friday’s flop follows the failure of the company’s first attempt at a moon landing in 2023

Following the disappointment, CFO Jumpei Nozaki said: “We’re not facing any immediate financial deterioration or distress because of the event.”

Ispace will now have to wait years before taking another shot at a lunar landing.

However, the country remains committed to the mission – and a number of private companies there are looking at moon exploration as a business opportunity.

Tokyo-based ispace had hoped to join US firms Intuitive Machines and Firefly Aerospace in making successful commercial moon landings.

It comes amid a global race that includes state-run lunar missions from China and India.

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