Japan ispace confirms lunar landing failure after loss of communication

TOKYO, June 6 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo-based space startup ispace has officially confirmed the failure of its lunar landing mission, after losing communication with its lander during descent in the early hours of Friday.

In a press conference held shortly after 9:00 a.m. Japan time, ispace announced the mission's conclusion after determining that communication recovery with the lander was no longer feasible.

The lander, launched in January from Florida, successfully entered lunar orbit and began its descent from an altitude of 100 kilometers at around 3:00 a.m. on Friday.

It was scheduled to make a soft landing at 4:17 a.m. on a flat region near Mare Frigoris, also known as the "Sea of Cold" in the Moon's northern hemisphere.

However, by 4:30 a.m., the company reported it had not established communication with the lander and began investigating the situation. The team concluded that the mission had not succeeded in achieving a soft landing.

The second attempt followed the company's failure in 2023, when a misjudgment in altitude led to a crash.