The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) aims to land an unmanned probe on the Moon by 2018 or early 2019.

Japan wants to keep the pace with China and other space powers such as the United States and the European Union. JAXA and other countries involved in this mission held a presentation that included the chance of a lunar landing by April 1, 2018.

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JAXA had shown the proposal to a government committee of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

The project, however, isn't final because JAXA needs to win funding for it. It's just a plan but the mission already raises hopes to restore space exploration among Japan's national priorities. Japan was the first Asian nation to place satellite into orbit over the Earth. Japan is also known as one of the world's prominent space-faring countries.

Japan's space program, however, has never sought to send Japanese astronauts into orbit on their own spacecraft. Japanese astronauts have been to the International Space Station.

JAXA is collaborating with the Science and Technology Agency as part of its space program expansion. They issued an outline for a space expedition that sets a target for Japan to lead the United States and other countries in some space science field in the future.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is giving the agency a boost by pushing to develop the technologies with defense applications.

"There are areas of unlimited potential yet to be developed, and to boost controls of future threats it is important to minimize the power vacuum in space exploration," the proposal said.

Meanwhile, it's China's moment. China has made big strides in sending a human into space. They became the third country after Russia and United States to put astronauts into orbit. 

TagsJapan Space Agency Plans to Land in Moon By 2018, jaxa, Japan Space Agency, space exploration, ISS, Moon exploration, space expedition, unmanned mission to the moon, NASA