It has long been thought that the lunar body resulted from an impact between the early Earth and another planet-sized object 4.5 billion years ago.

BBC: Moon formation: New spins put on old questions

Combining January and February, thereby smoothing out the impact of the Lunar New Year, exports from South Korea grew 0.6% YoY, marginally better than the 0.4% decline recorded in the fourth quarter of last year.

FORBES: Why Are Asia's Markets Trailing The World?

The television pictures on board were designed to begin operating when the rocket came within 2, 500 miles (4, 023km) of the lunar surface - 40 minutes before impact - and then send an image of the Moon back to Earth every 13 seconds.

BBC: 1962: First US rocket lands on Moon

It is surrounded by rays of ejecta that stretch across much of the southern lunar hemisphere, indicating the violence of the impact that formed it.

ECONOMIST: Asteroid impacts

The impact will not, however, be sufficiently energetic to melt the lunar soil and release any water that is bound in hydrated minerals.

ECONOMIST: Creative destruction

The impact sites show that the spacecraft kicked up fields of dark debris as they slammed into the lunar soil.

BBC: Nasa reveals new information about moon probes crash sites