Luna 25

Luna-25
Luna 25 lunar lander mock-up
NamesLuna-Glob lander
Mission typeTechnology, reconnaissance
OperatorSRI RAS (IKI RAN)
COSPAR ID2023-118A
SATCAT no.57600
Websiteiki.cosmos.ru/missions/luna-25
Mission duration
  • 1 year (planned)
  • Actual: c. 9 days (mission failure)
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeRobotic lander
ManufacturerNPO Lavochkin
Launch mass1,750 kg (3,860 lb)
Payload mass30 kg (66 lb)
Start of mission
Launch dateAugust 10, 2023, 23:10 (2023-08-10UTC23:10Z) UTC
RocketSoyuz-2.1b / Fregat
Launch siteVostochny Cosmodrome
Contractor
Lunar lander
Landing date11:57, 19 August 2023 (UTC) (2023-08-19T11:57:00Z) (crashed)
Landing sitenear-Lunar south pole (intended)
57°51′54″S 61°21′36″E / 57.865°S 61.360°E / -57.865; 61.360 (crash site)
(Pontécoulant G crater)

Luna 25 mission patch

Luna 25 (or Luna-25; Russian: Луна-25) was a failed Russian lunar lander mission by Roscosmos in August 2023 that planned to land near the lunar south pole, in the vicinity of the crater Boguslawsky.

Initially called the Luna-Glob lander (Russian: Луна-Глоб), it was renamed Luna 25 to emphasize continuity with the Soviet Union's Luna programme from the 1970s, though it is part of the Luna-Glob lunar exploration programme. It was the first lunar lander that the Russian space agency Roscosmos has sent to the Moon and would have been the first lander to land on the lunar south pole.

The Luna 25 mission lifted off on 10 August 2023, 23:10 UTC, atop a Soyuz-2.1b rocket from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's far eastern Amur Region, and on 16 August entered lunar orbit. On 19 August at 11:57 UTC, the lander crashed on the Moon's surface after a failed orbital manoeuvre.