A top Russian astronomer and moon scientist was rushed to hospital after the humiliating failure of Vladimir Putin’s Luna-25 mission.
The unmanned spacecraft crashed on the surface of the moon after spinning out of control.
Space scientist Mikhail Marov, 90, was rushed to hospital in Moscow, Russia after the failure of ‘his life’s work’ Luna-25 mission
Academician Mikhail Marov, 90, described as a key consultant to the mission, was rushed to hospital with a “sharp deterioration” in his health.
This came as he demanded no cover-up for the reasons the lunar mission – ordered by Putin – ended in disaster amid suspicions of endemic corruption in the space industry.
Luna-25 was Russia’s first attempt to land on the moon in 47 years.
Its failure is expected to trigger a blame game with Putin firing those he holds responsible for Russia’s humiliation.
Professor Marov, an ardent proponent on the moon mission described in some reports as its scientific director, was devastated over the failed landing, and made clear this was the reason for his sudden hospitalisation in Moscow’s elite Central Clinical Hospital (TsKB).
He is a giant of spaceship design, and expert on the moon, Mars and Venus.
He made clear Luna-25 was his “last hope to see the revival of our lunar programme” and this was now dashed.
“It’s sad that we didn’t manage to land the device,” he said.
He demanded that the reasons should not be hushed up.
“There was a mistake in the algorithms for launching into near-lunar orbit,” he said.
“It must be found.
“For the specialists who will be involved in the work of the commission, this will not be a big problem.
“I think the answer will be found in the foreseeable future.”
From hospital Marov – a Soviet-era space giant – told reporters: “I am under observation.
“How can I not worry?
“This has been very much a matter of my life. It’s all very hard.”
Russia must return to space and landing on the moon, he demanded.
The spacecraft spun out of control as it was being prepared for pre-landing.
“The apparatus moved into an unpredictable orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the Moon,” admitted Roscosmos, the Russian space agency.
It was the most ambitious space project of Putin’s almost 24 years as either president or prime minister, underlining the country’s demise since the heady days of the Cold War when Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space.
Russia had not attempted a moon mission since Luna-24 in 1976, when Communist leader Leonid Brezhnev ruled the Kremlin.
Russian sources are already blaming endemic corruption inside the agency for the failure of the mission.
They are questioning the future of Yury Borisov, a Putin-loyalist and ex-deputy premier now at the helm of the Russian Space Agency.
He is accused of ending probes into corruption and misuse of budgets at the space agency.