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Russia Delays Moon Missions; Artemis II Completes Flyby

Russia Delays Moon Missions; Artemis II Completes Flyby

Russia Delays Moon Missions; Artemis II Completes Flyby
Above: **Watermarked Getty Image. Kindly Replace** The Soyuz MS-28 crew at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Moscow, Russia, on Nov. 25, 2025. Image credit: Roscosmos/Anadolu/Getty Images

The Spin

Russia's space program is far from dead — it's stabilized and rebuilt military space capabilities over the past decade, maintaining roughly the same share of space power it held in 2007. Luna-25's failure is one data point, not a trend, and Russia's active ASAT testing, rendezvous operations and cyber capabilities prove it remains a serious space power. Dismissing Russia based on one crashed lander is dangerously naive.

Luna-25 crashed because Russia slapped a bloated, unreliable "import substituted" control unit onto it — seven times heavier than the original and it failed at the worst moment. Every deep space probe Russia has launched since 1991 has failed or been shelved, and corruption gutted Roscosmos from the inside. This isn't a stumble; it's a dying program propped up by propaganda.

Metaculus Prediction

There is a 30% chance Mars will have a permanent population of 10,000 before the Moon does, according to the Metaculus prediction community.


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© 2026 Improve the News Foundation. All rights reserved.Version 6.18.0

© 2026 Improve the News Foundation.

All rights reserved.

Version 6.18.0