Overview

• Contact with Resilience was lost more than a minute before its scheduled touchdown in Mare Frigoris on June 5, ending the lander’s descent prematurely.
• Preliminary analysis points to delays in laser altimeter data processing that prevented the engines from braking in time for a soft landing.
• The mission carried the 5-kilogram rover Tenacious, equipped with a shovel to collect moon dust for sale to NASA, but the rover never deployed.
• This marks ispace’s second failed lunar landing attempt following a similar crash in April 2023, while US firms Intuitive Machines and Firefly Aerospace have successfully touched down.
• Despite the setback, ispace remains committed to private lunar exploration and plans a larger, more advanced lander for launch in 2027 with NASA involvement.