Japan plans to put a man on the moon by 2030, according to a new proposal by the government's Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa).

It is the first time Jaxa has announced its intentions to explore the lunar surface, and will most likely form part of an international mission, the agency said.

Jaxa's plans, announced Wednesday, mean Japan is joining a host of other Asian nations in what is being dubbed the 'Asian space race'.

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Japan plans to put a man on the moon by 2030, according to a new proposal by the government's Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa). The mission will most likely form part of an international collaboration, the agency said (file photo)

CHINA'S PLANS FOR SPACE EXPLORATION Since 2009, China has been upping its work in space exploration in a number of stages. Each stage has been given a name to refer to the mission plans. Stage 1 'Around': Yinghuo-1 was launched in 2009 with the aim of bringing back samples, but it was left stranded in orbit and disintegrated. Stage 2 'Landing': Yinghuo-2 is expected to launch in 2020 to collect data on Mars. Stage 3 'Circular': A rover will be sent to Mars to carry out exploration. Advertisement

It is the latest in a series of ambitious plans announced by Asian countries, with rising competition for space-related power mirroring the space race raged between the United States and the USSR during the cold war in the mid-20th century.

In December 2016, China announced its intentions to put a man on the moon by 2036, as well as plans to land a rover on Mars by 2020.

India became the fourth country to plant its flag on the moon in 2008, behind the US, Russia and China, and plans to land a second unmanned probe on the lunar surface by mid-2018.

The country is yet to announce plans for a manned mission to moon.

Jaxa's moon mission was proposed to a panel at Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology this week, which is responsible for directing the country's space exploration.

A Jaxa spokesperson told CNN the plan wasn't to send an exclusively Japanese rocket to the Moon, which would be extremely costly.

They said the proposal was for Jaxa to contribute to a multinational manned lunar probe by contributing technology, which would grant Japan a spot on the mission.

The spokesperson told CNN a plan for Japan's future space exploration would be released by the panel in time for Japan's International Space Exploration Forum in March 2018.

Since 2009, China has been upping its work in space exploration. This image shows China's Tianzhou-1 cargo spacecraft preparing for launch in Wenchang, Hainan province, on 17 April 2017. It successfully docked with the country's Tiangong-2 space laboratory on 22 April

The country could reach the moon a few years before China, which also has ambitious plans for a manned lunar mission.

Earlier this month it was revealed China is making 'preliminary' preparations to send a man to the moon, the latest goal in China's ambitious lunar exploration programme.

State media cited a senior space official as saying that it will 'not take long' for China's manned mission to the moon to get official approval and funding.

The comment was the first confirmation that China intended to fund and run a manned lunar programme.

In April it was revealed that China is talking with the European Space Agency about collaborating on a human settlement on the moon. Pictured is an artist's illustration released by the ESA last year

This week's statement on Beijing's mission was made by Yang Liwei, deputy director general of China Manned Space Agency and China's first man in space.

The report, published June 6, gave no other details, but such a trip could still be many years off.

China in 2003 became the third country to put a man in space with its own rocket after the former Soviet Union and the United States.

It has touted its plans for moon exploration and in late 2013 completed the first lunar 'soft landing' since 1976 with the Chang'e-3 craft and its Jade Rabbit rover.

The country also plans to land the first probe ever on the dark side of the moon in 2018, another milestone.