Mission Type: Lander
Launch Vehicle: 8K78 (no. G103-10)
Launch Site: NIIP-5 / launch site 1
Spacecraft Mass: 1,420 kg
Spacecraft Instruments: 1) imaging system and 2) radiation detector
References:
Deep Space Chronicle: A Chronology of Deep Space and Planetary Probes 1958-2000, Monographs in Aerospace History No. 24, by Asif A. Siddiqi

National Space Science Data Center, http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/

This was the second Soviet attempt to accomplish a soft-landing on the Moon.

This time, the spacecraft failed to reach Earth orbit. Following separation of the second stage, the booster lost attitude control and deposited its third and fourth stages in the Pacific Ocean near Midway Island.

Later investigation indicated that the I-100 guidance system provided incorrect information to the booster's trajectory control system.