A Russian spacecraft collided

Russian state media TASS, along with the Russian space agency Roscosmos, reported that the Luna-25 spacecraft impacted the moon after losing communication.

This mission was set to be Russia's first lunar landing in 47 years.

Prior to the impact, Luna-25 "deviated from its intended orbit," TASS reported.

A specially-formed interdepartmental commission has been tasked to investigate the circumstances leading to the Luna-25's loss, as per state media. This announcement came a day after Roscosmos reported an "emergency situation" when the spacecraft tried to enter a pre-landing orbit.

In a Telegram post, Roscosmos stated, "During the operation, an emergency situation arose onboard the probe, preventing the maneuver from being executed as planned."

Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Russia had not endeavored to land a spacecraft on the moon until the Luna-25 mission. Luna 24, the last lunar lander, landed on the moon on August 18, 1976.

The Luna-25 mission commenced on August 10 when the spacecraft was launched from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Amur Oblast, setting it on a swift path to the moon.

Due to its trajectory, Luna-25 reached the lunar surface ahead of India's Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander, which had been launched in mid-July.