China moon mission possible 'within three years'

China’s planned space probe to fly to the moon and a mission could be ready to go within three years, an official with the programme said today.

However, China’s government, which is intent on launching a manned mission to orbit the earth later this year, has yet to give approval to the moon shot, the state-controlled newspaper China Daily quoted Ouyang Ziyuan, chief scientist of the lunar program, as saying.

Following the Columbia disaster, China has reaffirmed its determination to become only the third nation in history to launch a manned spacecraft.

Chinese scientists said they will draw lessons from the US space shuttle programme, in which seven astronauts died last month.