A private Japanese spacecraft, Resilience, tragically crashed into the Moon while attempting to achieve Japan's first commercial lunar landing on Thursday, June 5. This incident has been confirmed by the Tokyo-based company, ispace, marking the second failed moon mission for the firm. The Resilience lander was launched aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket in January, and communication was lost less than two minutes before its scheduled lunar landing, as reported by the Associated Press.
In a statement released this morning, ispace explained that the spacecraft's descent initially progressed smoothly. However, upon reaching an altitude of approximately 12 miles (20 kilometers) above the lunar surface, mission control experienced a loss of telemetry with the lander. After unsuccessful attempts to reestablish contact, ispace concluded that Resilience had most likely crash-landed on the Moon, ultimately ending the mission.
“Given that there is currently no prospect of a successful lunar landing, our top priority is to swiftly analyze the telemetry data we have obtained thus far and work diligently to identify the cause,” stated Takeshi Hakamada, founder and CEO of ispace, in the official statement. The company indicated that the source of the mishap was likely a malfunction of the laser device responsible for measuring the distance between Resilience and the lunar surface. Consequently, the lander failed to decelerate adequately, preventing its planned soft landing.
Launched aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket on January 15, Resilience entered lunar orbit on May 6, according to NASA. Weighing in at 2,200 pounds (1,000 kilograms), this prism-shaped lander carried five payloads. Notable among these was a tiny rover called Tenacious, a water electrolyzer experiment, an innovative algae-based food production module, and a deep space radiation monitor. However, one of the most intriguing aspects of the mission was the charming miniature house, dubbed the Moonhouse, which Resilience aimed to establish on the lunar surface.
The whimsical white-trimmed red cottage was designed by Swedish artist Mikael Genberg, who has long dreamed of placing a little house on the Moon for the past 25 years. Unfortunately, this artistic endeavor was unable to fulfill its celestial destiny, as the Resilience mission ended in disappointment.
The failure of Resilience draws parallels with ispace's first lunar landing attempt in April 2023, which also resulted in a crash landing due to the lander running out of propellant while nearing the lunar surface. ispace is among several companies striving to offer commercial payload transportation services to the Moon. However, so far, only Firefly Aerospace has successfully achieved a fully operational private lunar landing. This company launched its Blue Ghost lander on the same Falcon 9 rocket that carried Resilience in January.
Despite experiencing two consecutive mission failures, ispace remains optimistic and plans to launch two additional Moon missions in 2027. The company intends to debut its larger, upgraded Apex 1.0 lander for these upcoming missions, though it remains to be seen whether this new lander will prove more capable than its predecessor, Resilience.
