India to join Artemis Accords: What is the US-led agreement on space exploration?

Grounded in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, the Artemis Accords is a non-binding international agreement, designed to guide civil space exploration and use.

India has decided to join Artemis Accord, the United States-led international agreement on civil space exploration, the White House said Thursday. US space agency the National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have also agreed for a joint mission to the International Space Station next year, the statement added.

The US-led Artemis Accords were launched in October 2020. (Twitter/@Nasa)

The development in space co-operation comes amid Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to the US, during which the two nations are expected to announce a range of deals in the areas of defence and commerce to boost India-US ties. “On space, we will be able to announce that India is signing the Artemis Accords, which advance a common vision for space exploration for the benefit of all humankind,” news agency PTI quoted a senior administration official as saying.

What is the Artemis Accord?

Grounded in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, the Artemis Accords is a non-binding international agreement, designed to guide civil space exploration and sustainable use. Artemis program is NASA's initiative to return humans to the Moon, in which it aims to land the first woman and the first person of colour on the Earth's natural satellite. The need for Artemis Accords was realised as the “number of mission and operation around Moon by numerous countries and private firms have significantly increased over the years," NASA said.

The agreement is meant to reinforce the commitment by the United States and signatory nations for the “peaceful use of outer space." As per NASA, the Artemis Accords govern principles that describe the “best practices in carrying out activities in outer space is intended to increase the safety of operations, reduce uncertainty, and promote the sustainable and beneficial use of space for all humankind.”

The agreement applies to all the civil space activities conducted by the civil space agencies of each signatory. These include activities done on Moon, Mars, comets, and asteroids and other celestial bodies. It also lays guidelines on cooperation among countries on ensuring transparency mechanism on space exploration, sharing scientific information, development of interoperable and common exploration infrastructure and standards, preserving space heritage among other principles.

The US-led Artemis Accords were launched in October 2020 with Australia, Canada, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States. As of May 2023, there are 25 signatories to the agreement.