Peregrine One, an American spacecraft launched last week with the aim of try to land on the moon completed its mission after bursting into flames over the Pacific.

A fuel leak problem that occurred made any prospect of a lunar landing impossible and it was ordered to self-destruct. The private company, Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic, guided the craft into the Earth’s atmosphere with the intention of burning up afterwards.

Little or no remnants of Peregrine are expected to reach the surface of the Pacific Ocean intact.

Astrobotic’s goal was to deliver five Nasa instruments to the Moon’s surface to study the local environment before the astronauts return later this decade.

If the Peregrine craft were to land successfully, it would be the first American mission in half a century to do so and the first private enterprise to do so. However, Astrobotic’s mission ran into problems almost as soon as it lifted off from the top of the launch vehicle on Monday, January 8.

From its launch Peregrine One

Astrobotic posted a video on social media showing the spacecraft’s view of Earth before it burned up.

Astrobotic is the first of three US companies to send a lander to the Moon this year as part of a new private-public partnership with Nasa.