Japan Sets Its Sights on the Moon

China, India lead race to put unmanned craft on lunar surface
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 9, 2007 12:26 PM CDT
Japan Sets Its Sights on the Moon
An H2-A rocket is prepared at space center in Tanegashima, southern Japan Thursday night, Sept. 13, 2007. Japan's space agency is to launch its long-delayed lunar orbiter on Friday. (AP Photo/Kyodo News)   (Associated Press)

Japan is officially joining the ranks of countries intent on lunar exploration. The country plans to land an unmanned rover on the lunar surface "in the middle of the 2010s," a government official announced today. China and India have already announced plans to place a spacecraft on the mysterious satellite, Reuters reports.

Japan has already crash-landed a rocket on the moon, and last week it put a satellite into lunar orbit. The country's rover will examine the moon’s geology, searching for natural resources. Although Japan has never attempted a manned spaceflight, the country hopes to put men on the moon by 2025. (More space exploration stories.)

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