Russian spacecraft crashes into the moon

The first Russian lunar mission in nearly half a century ended with a bang.

The Luna-25, which left earth on August 10, crash-landed on the moon nine days later after an incident involving the pre-landing maneuvers malfunctioned, Russian space agency Roscosmos said late Saturday on its Telegram channel.

According to Roscosmos, the last communication with the spacecraft was at 2:57 p.m. Moscow time (13:57 CEST) on Saturday. Efforts after that to get back in contact with the craft did not produce any results, the agency said. 

Russia Wants To Annex The Moon

Because Russia hasn't been accused of imperial behaviour quite enough lately, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin announced on Friday that the nation plans to carve out an area of operations on the moon.

According to Voice of Russia, Rogozin explained to government daily Rossiiskaya Gazeta on Friday that since Russia is "going to come to the moon forever," it doesn't make much sense to keep making trips back and forth. Instead, Rogozin says, Moscow will plan on establishing a permanent base on the moon, which could mean that as its sole human occupants they'd essentially be in control up there.

China lands rover on the moon

China on Saturday successfully carried out the world's first soft landing of a space probe on the moon in nearly four decades, state media said, the next stage in an ambitious space program that aims to eventually put a Chinese astronaut on the moon.

The unmanned Chang'e 3 lander, named after a mythical Chinese goddess of the moon, touched down on Earth's nearest neighbor following a 12-minute landing process.

Russia Announces 'Aggressive' Plan For Fleet Of Robots To Explore The Moon

Russia has announced it will launch a fleet of space robots to explore the Moon.

Nasa's former space-race competitor (when it was still the Soviet Union) - and current close partner and contractor - unveiled its new "aggressive" exploration program at a symposium in Texas.

In a presentation titled "Lunar Farside and Poles — New Destinations for Exploration" Igor Mitrofanov of the Institute for Space Research said that robots would precede human exploration of the Moon's surface.

Mining On The Moon: Canada's Role In Harvesting Gold, Fuel In The Next Space Race

MONTREAL - Canada could play a key role in a new international space race, with the next sprint to the moon gearing up as an extra-terrestrial gold rush.

Industry insiders will be watching closely this week as the heads of the world's five biggest space agencies get together in Quebec City, where the partners on the International Space Station will discuss more than just the future of the orbiting lab.

They will also address an idea gaining currency in business and scientific circles: that within human reach lies an unfathomable wealth of resources, some of them common on Earth and others so exotic that they could change the way we live.

Canada could figure prominently in any discussion about lunar exploration, with nearly one-quarter of the world's top mining companies headquartered here and this country also known for robotics like the famous Canadarm.

Several countries, including China, have expressed a desire to start mining the moon's resources. The mining industry is now waiting for the Canadian Space Agency to make its intentions known, while the agency awaits direction from the federal government.