YEHUD, Israel — An Israeli spacecraft crashed during its attempt to make history as the first privately funded lunar mission.
The SpaceIL spacecraft lost contact with Earth late Thursday, just moments before it was to land on the moon, and scientists declared the mission a failure.
The small robotic spacecraft, built by the non-profit SpaceIL and state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries, had hoped to match a feat that has only been achieved by the national space agencies of three countries: U.S., Russia and China.
"If at first you don't succeed, try try again," said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was on hand for what organizers had hoped to be a celebration.
Before the mission failed, the lander sent back a picture while just 22 kilometers from the moon's surface.
Unlike giant, powerful NASA rockets that hurtle directly toward moon, the humble four-legged landing craft, barely the size of a washing machine, had embarked on a risky and roundabout route.
The $100 million mission couldn't afford its own rocket, so Beresheet hitched a ride on the SpaceX Falcon rocket, launched from Florida in February.
