This week, the Russian space agency Roscosmos had hoped to return to the moon after an absence of nearly 50 years. Instead, on Saturday it lost control of its Luna-25 lander. The agency explained the spacecraft "switched to an off-design orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the lunar surface."

Yet, in an interview aired on state television, the agency's chief, Yuri Borisov, pledged his nation's unwavering commitment to lunar exploration:

A team of computational social scientists at George Mason University has found via simulations that 22 people is the minimum number needed to start a human colony on Mars. The group has posted a paper describing their simulation on the arXiv preprint server.

As humans around the globe ponder the possibility of one day sending people to Mars, and then at some later date, establishing a colony, scientists are exploring ways to overcome the hurdles standing in the way of achieving such goals. One factor that needs to be addressed, according to the team, is determining how many people could sustain a Mars colony, and what types of people are required.

To find possible answers, the team created a model simulating a Mars colony, focused specifically on how many people are required to create a viable colony as well as the characteristics that would most likely contribute to the success of such a colony. To that end, they used data from past endeavors, such as questionnaires filled out by groups aboard the International Space Station or those living in close quarters in the Arctic for months at a time.

India readied Wednesday to become the first nation to land a spacecraft on the Moon's south pole, days after a Russian probe crashed in the same region.

The latest attempted Moon landing is a historic moment for the world's most populous nation, as it rapidly closes in on milestones set by global space powers.

Chandrayaan-3, which means "Mooncraft" in Sanskrit, is scheduled to touch down shortly after 6:00 pm India time (1230 GMT) near the little-explored lunar south pole.

"India reaches for the Moon", The Times of India front-page headline read Wednesday, with the hoped-for lunar landing dominating local news. "It's D-Day for Moon Mission", The Hindustan Times said.

A previous Indian effort failed in 2019, and the latest attempt comes just days after Russia's first Moon mission in almost 50 years, destined for the same region, crashed on the lunar surface.

India readied Wednesday to become the first nation to land a spacecraft on the Moon's south pole, days after a Russian probe crashed in the same region.

The latest attempted Moon landing is a historic moment for the world's most populous nation, as it rapidly closes in on milestones set by global space powers.

Chandrayaan-3, which means "Mooncraft" in Sanskrit, is scheduled to touch down shortly after 6:00 pm India time (1230 GMT) near the little-explored lunar south pole.

"India reaches for the Moon", The Times of India front-page headline read Wednesday, with the hoped-for lunar landing dominating local news. "It's D-Day for Moon Mission", The Hindustan Times said.

A previous Indian effort failed in 2019, and the latest attempt comes just days after Russia's first Moon mission in almost 50 years, destined for the same region, crashed on the lunar surface.