On November 22, 2000, the Information Office of the State Council published White Paper on China's Space Activities, declaring that China would start preliminary research programs leading to moon exploration. In 2001, China National Space Administration issued The Guideline of Development for China Space Activities in the Tenth Five-Year Plan Period, releasing the information on some of major space projects that were about to be launched.

　　China's manned space flight program is a grand one. According to the program, Chinese astronauts will go through three steps. The successful launching of Shenzhou V will be just the beginning. On this basis, Chinese astronauts will proceed to the second step, during which Chinese astronauts will observe the earth and conduct space experiments with focus on astronauts having activities outside the capsule, rendezvous experiments, docking experiments and setting up space laboratory attended by regular astronauts in outer space. China will expedite its progams to establish a complete space engineering system, by which China will be able to utilize the outer space. The third step would be to build larger space stations.

　　China's Long March series of rockets have a grand history behind them. They are making great contributions to China's spaceflights by successfully rocketing Dongfanghong satellites, Aoxing satellite and Shenzhou spaceships into outer space. During the Tenth Five-Year Plan Period and even in the next 20 years, satellites weighing four tons and even five tons will make up 62% of the satellites launching market in the world. China's new rockets, which use the current technologies, are made up of three modules that can be reshuffled just like building blocks, and they are new families of rockets. Whether satellites to be launched are big or small, and whether a rocket is to carry one satellite or more, what one needs to do is to reshuffle the　"building blocks" . The reliability of the Long March series of rockets is one of the best in the world.

　　Moon explorations also have started. In 1997, three academicians Yang Jiachi, Wang Dahang and Chen Fangyun published Proposal on China's Moon Exploration Technology Development in the name of State 863 Plan. In 1998, Chinese scientists and researchers started a research program entitled The Overall Plan for Moon Exploration Robots and Analysis of Key Technologies, ushering in the research work on moon vehicle.

　　A new wave of moon exploration is on the rise around the world. Not long ago, the U.S. started a new program aiming to return to the moon, saying that it would focus its deep outer space exploration on the moon. The European Space Bureau would also explore the moon by dividing into four phases before 2020 and eventually build a base on the moon where astronauts can stay on the moon permanently. The first European moon probe is expected to be rocketed into space by the end of this year. In addition, Japan and India also drew up their moon exploration plans. Even some of private companies in the U.S. are joining the trend, planning to send moon probes. Faced by so much competition, the Chinese nation will continue its outstanding progress and try to catch up with the most advanced space technology in the world.

　　For the Chinese nation, it is just the beginning and there will be no end of its space exploration.

　　(October 15, PLA Daily)