South Korea Is The Latest Nation To Join NASA's Artemis Accords

NASA has announced that South Korea is now among the countries that have signed the Artemis Accords, joining other nations like the UK, UAE, Japan, Canada, Australia, and more. The Artemis Accords set forth a series of principles that the countries will follow, including everything from the public release of data to the safe and peaceful exploration of our Moon.

NASA first announced the Artemis Accords in October 2020 with a total of nine nations on board, including the US. South Korea is the 10th country to join and the first to do so under the Biden administration, which anticipates that other countries will also sign the Artemis Accords in coming 'months and years.'

The Artemis Accords were established to 'guide future cooperative activities,' NASA had announced, explaining that the agreement includes things like all Artemis program activities being of a peaceful nature, interoperability between participating nation, agreements to offer emergency assistance when necessary, agreement to follow the Registration Convention, the safe disposal of debris resulting from Artemis activities, and more.

In a statement about South Korea's decision to sign the Artemis Accords, NASA's new administrator Sen. Bill Nelson said:

I am thrilled the Republic of Korea has committed to the Artemis Accords. Their signature demonstrates the strong momentum worldwide in supporting our Moon to Mars exploration approach. Partnering in deep space will ensure our missions are carried out in accordance with important, universal principles like transparency, safety, and peaceful exploration, which are critical to ensuring a safe, and prosperous future in space for all.

NASA aims to work with emerging space agencies in addition to its older, more established partners, noting that doing so will make the Artemis program globally beneficial while boosting the program's capabilities.