Dec 12, 2024On Dec. 11, 2024, Panama and Austria became the 49th and 50th signatories of the Artemis Accords. The United States, led by NASA with the U.S. Department of State, and seven other founding nations established the Artemis Accords in 2020, a common set of principles designed to guide civil exploration and use of outer space for the benefit of all. By signing the Artemis Accords, these 50 nations come together in the name of safe and responsible space exploration. Any nation that wants to commit to the principles is welcome to sign. The full list of Artemis Accords nations now includes: Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Panama, Peru, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, and Uruguay. For more information, check out: https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-accords/Credit: NASAImage Credit [0:50]: UAE Space AgencyMusic: Universal Production Music
Following a signing ceremony Monday in Thailand’s capital city, Bangkok, NASA congratulates Thailand as the 51st nation to commit to the safe and responsible exploration of space that benefits humanity.“Thailand’s commitment to the Artemis Accords will enhance the country’s engagement with NASA and the international community,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “By signing the accords, Thailand builds upon an important foundation and shows great leadership for the open, responsible and peaceful exploration of space.”
One industry source, speaking on background, compared Artemis to Schrödinger’s Cat, the thought experiment from quantum mechanics used to describe superposition: simultaneously alive and dead as NASA continues work on its various programs amid the expectation that many elements of the effort will be altered or canceled by the new administration.Members of Congress have said little about potential changes to Artemis, and the Senate Commerce Committee has yet to schedule a confirmation hearing for Jared Isaacman, the Trump administration’s nominee to be NASA administrator.However, Rep. Brian Babin (R-Texas), chairman of the House Science Committee, signaled continued support for efforts to return humans to the moon during an organizational meeting for the committee Feb. 5.“We will also advance legislation that supports the U.S. commercial space industry and keeps NASA on its mission to return Americans to the moon and establishes a pathway to Mars and beyond,” he said.
