Israel’s Beresheet craft crashes on lunar surface during Moon landing attempt
Project by non-profit group SpaceIL fails in bid to become first private craft to land on Earth's satellite
An Israeli spacecraft has failed in its bid to become the first private craft to land on the moon after crashing on the lunar surface.
Non-profit organisation SpaceIL had been hoping to see itsBeresheet craft complete a landing on the moon, and in the process make Israel only the fourth country to manage the feat.
But Doron Opher, general manager of the space division of Israel Aerospace Industries, said the craft “definitely crashed on the surface of the moon”.
The spacecraft lost communication with Earth just moments before it was to touch down.
“If at first you don’t succeed, try try again,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was on hand for what organisers had hoped to be a celebration.
The lander – whose name is Hebrew for Genesis – took off almost two months ago from Cape Canaveral in Florida as part of a “ride share” with Elon Musk’s SpaceX, as theBeresheet mission could not afford its own rocket.
The four-legged spacecraft, which is around the size of a washing machine, had been circling the Earth in increasingly large orbits waiting to be captured by the moon’s gravity.
It was expected to land in the Sea of Serenity, on the northern hemisphere of the moon’s near side.
A time capsule was on board the lander – which included a picture of Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon, who died on the space shuttle Columbia in 2003 – as well as a lunar library containing 30 million pages on a disk from the US-based Arch Mission Foundation.
Mr Ramon’s widow, Rona, who was a big supporter of Beresheet, died of cancer in December.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
