A private Japanese space company said Wednesday its lander's attempt to touch down on the Moon had likely failed, with the vehicle probably crashing on the lunar surface.

日本一家私营航天公司周三表示，其着陆器登陆月球的尝试很可能已经失败，该飞行器可能在月球表面坠毁。

The spacecraft's developer, Tokyo-based Ispace Inc, was attempting to make history by being the first private company to land a vehicle on the Moon's surface, but said it lost contact with the lander early on Wednesday morning.

该航天器的开发商，总部位于东京的Ispace公司，试图创造第一个在月球表面着陆的私人公司的历史，但其表示，在周三早上与着陆器失去了联系。

Having entered orbit on April 13 around 100 km above the Moon, the vehicle was planned to land near a crater at around 1:40am JST Wednesday (4:40pm Tuesday GMT)

该飞行器于4月13日进入距离月球100公里左右的轨道，计划于日本时间周三凌晨1:40左右(格林尼治标准时间周二下午4点40分)在一个陨石坑附近着陆。

The company said in a statement that the spacecraft's fuel was thought to have run out and the speed of its descent increased rapidly thereafter.

该公司在一份声明中表示，可能是飞船的燃料已经耗尽，此后下降速度迅速加快。

Had the landing been successful, not only would it have been the first for a private company, but the first for Japan as a nation to successfully put a craft on the Moon.

如果此次登月成功，这不仅是私人公司的第一次登月，也是日本这个国家第一次成功地将飞船送上月球。

Takeshi Hakamada, founder and CEO of Ispace, said that despite the failed attempt, the mission was still significant.

Ispace的创始人兼首席执行官袴田武(Takeshi Hakamada)表示，尽管尝试失败，但这项任务仍然意义重大。

We believe that we have fully accomplished the significance of this mission, having acquired a great deal of data and experience by being able to execute the landing phase, he said.

他说:“我们相信，我们已经完全完成了这次任务的意义，通过能够执行着陆阶段，我们获得了大量的数据和经验。”