For the first time, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has revealed its intentions to put an astronaut on the Moon around 2030. The plan is to first join NASA’s multinational mission of building a space station in moon’s orbit by 2025 as Japan thinks sharing Japanese technology in this mission would eventually help it send an astronaut to the Moon.

Initial details of JAXA's lunar mission were presented this week to a panel at Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology. JAXA is expected to present a more formal and detailed blueprint of the plan next year.

Experts believe JAXA’s latest plan would only intensify the Space Race among major Asian powers including China, India, and Japan.

Asian space race

Since 2009, China has been busy advancing its technology in space exploration through different stages including Yinghuo-1, Yinghuo-2, etc. In 2003, it became the third country in the world, after the United States and the former Soviet Union, to send a man in space with its own rocket. In November 2016 again, the country demonstrated its space technology through Shenzhou-11 spacecraft that successfully carried two astronauts to space and brought them back safely to Earth.

China’s plans for moon and Mars

China wants to send a manned mission to Moon by 2036.

In 2013, it accomplished the lunar 'soft landing' with the Chang'e-3 craft and Jade Rabbit rover. In 2018, it will launch a mission to land a probe on the dark side of the moon, the first ever to do so. The Asian giant has also set its eyes on Mars and recently unveiled illustrations of a spacecraft and rover that it plans to send to Mars.

Chinese space agency is working hard to land a rover on the Red Planet by 2020. In April this year, China successfully accomplished docking of its Tianzhou-1 cargo spacecraft with country's Tiangong-2 space laboratory. According to some reports, China is also taking with European Space Agency to establish a human settlement on the moon.

India’s space mission

India’s space agency ISRO has also been advancing its space programs at great speeds. The country is revealed its plans to launch the second unmanned lunar mission in the first half of 2018. India’s first lunar mission was launched in 2008, making India the fourth country in the world to have successfully sent a probe to Moon. India also surprised the whole world in 2014 when it successfully sent a spacecraft to Mars’ orbit on the first attempt, something that China had failed to accomplish. India has not announced any plan for a manned mission to Moon so far.
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