Russia's Luna-25 probe crashes on the Moon

Russia's first Moon mission in almost 50 years, the Luna-25 probe has crashed on the Moon after an incident during pre-landing exercises, and communication was lost on Saturday Russian space agency Roscosmos said on Sunday.

According to preliminary findings, the lander "has ceased to exist following a collision with the Moon's surface". An investigation would be launched into the causes of the crash. The 800-kilogram Luna-25 probe was to have made a soft landing on the lunar South Pole, the first in history.