BAIKONUR. Sept 18 (Interfax) - The commission in charge of establishing the reasons for the crash of the Luna 25 landing craft plans to complete its work in late September, Roscosmos General Director Yury Borisov said.
"I think that we'll finish the work around the end of September and will inform the public about the main reasons [for the crash]," Borisov told reporters on Monday.
The main cause of the Luna 25 crash is thought to have been a failure of the correctional engine due to the improper functioning of an accelerometer which was supposed to monitor velocity changes, he said.
"The accelerometers did not turn on. We are carrying out a detailed inquiry into why they did not turn on. We have about 16 lines of investigation. We have already checked 11," Borisov said.
Luna 25, the first lunar landing mission in Russia's post-Soviet history, lifted off aboard a Soyuz-2.1b launch vehicle equipped with a Fregat upper stage from Vostochny Cosmodrome on August 11.
The spacecraft's soft landing on the Moon's South Pole was supposed to take place on August 21, but the lander was lost on August 19 after crashing into the lunar surface.
On August 21, Borisov blamed the Luna 25 engine's failure to shut down properly for the lander's crash.
"Instead of the planned 84 seconds, it worked for 127 seconds. This was the main cause of the lander's crash", he said.
Borisov said on August 25 that Russia was considering making another attempt to land at the lunar South Pole in 2025-2026 despite the Luna 25 crash.
Russia should not interrupt its lunar program and should remain in the "lunar race" in order to achieve technological sovereignty, he said.
Borisov said on August 11 that Roscosmos plans to launch the Luna 26 mission in 2027, Luna 27 in 2028, and Luna 28 by 2030 or later.