China's largest and most powerful new rocket the Long March 5 is shown to public on Nov.23, 2015 at the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center in south China's Hainan province. (Photo/Aihangtian.com)

Long March rockets are capable of carrying out unmanned deep-space exploration missions, according to experts at the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology.

The Mars exploration mission is part of the deep-space exploration missions and the carrying capacity of the launch vehicle is an important indicator to evaluate its performance. The Long March 5 rocket under development has a payload capacity of 14,000 kg to a geostationary transfer orbit and 25,000 kg to a low Earth orbit, capable of undertaking deep-space exploration missions. First flight of the Long March 5 rocket is expected to take place in 2016.

In 2014, India managed to launch its maiden Mars Orbiter mission, nicknamed Mangalyaan and became the world's fourth country to undertake a successful Mars mission. The 44.4-meter-long four stage PSLV-XL rocket with 6 strap-on solid boosters, which is used to launch the Mangalyaan mission, weighs 320 tons at lift-off and has a payload capacity of 1,300kg to a geosynchronous transfer orbit.

Theoretically, a country can launch a mission to the Mars as long as its rocket can reach the Mars orbit with a payload capacity bigger than zero. With a higher payload, the rocket is able to carry satellites with more facilities of different functions, according to Deng Xinyu, a rocket design expert. Deng added that China is capable of sending larger probes of more functions compared with India if China chooses to make a maiden launch mission to the Mars.

India's PSLV-XL rocket does not have ability to take the Mars rover of 1,300 kg directly into the Earth–Mars transfer orbit while the Long March 3B rocket with four strap-on boosters can send a 2,600 kg Mars rover directly into the orbit. Therefore, the Long March 5 carrier rocket can carry heavier rovers into an orbit during deep-space exploration missions.