Japan’s ispace Fails Second Moon Landing Attempt

Japanese startup ispace Inc. has failed once again to become the first private company from Japan to land on the Moon, following its unsuccessful first attempt in 2023, CE Report quotes ANSA.

The Tokyo-based company reported that its lunar lander Resilience crashed into the Moon’s surface after failing to slow down sufficiently during descent.

"We are determined to catch up as soon as possible with U.S. companies that have already succeeded," said CEO Takeshi Hakamada during a press conference.

Resilience, which was carrying a rover and equipment for experiments, launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 15 as part of a mission to reach the Moon’s northern hemisphere. According to data provided, it attempted to land at 4:17 a.m. (Japan time) on Friday (9:17 p.m. in Italy). However, after the landing sequence, mission control was unable to establish communication with the spacecraft.

"By 8:00 a.m. on June 6, 2025, mission controllers concluded that it was unlikely communication with the lander could be restored," ispace said in a press release.

"The decision was made to end the mission."

The company’s first attempt to reach the Moon’s northern hemisphere in April 2023 also ended in failure.

U.S. company Intuitive Machines became the first private firm in the world to successfully land a spacecraft on the Moon in February 2024.

The lunar lander from U.S. company Firefly Aerospace Inc., which launched in January on the same rocket as ispace’s Resilience, reached the Moon on March 2—taking a different route than ispace’s lander.