Moon mission on the horizon

Research into rocket for manned lunar landing part of national plan

BEIJING - Preliminary research on a "giant leap" to the moon has been included in the government's plans for the next five years, according to a white paper issued on Thursday.

The white paper, China's Space Activities in 2011, said that research on a heavy-thrust carrier rocket - vital for launching manned spacecraft to the moon - will be carried out in the next five years.