Eight nations that include Australia, Canada, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States have signed the Artemis Accord aimed at reaffirming commitment to peaceful, cooperative, and transparent activities on the moon. The new development comes at a time when NASA is gearing up with its upcoming Artemis mission, which will land the first woman and the next man on the moon in 2024.
NASA's Project Steadily Progressing Amid Funding Woes
The ultimate aim of NASA's Artemis mission is to explore the lunar surface, and it will also try to set up a permanent human colony on the lunar surface. Several space scientists believe that setting up a permanent human settlement on the moon is very much necessary to achieve the ultimate goal of Mars colonization.
However, Congress should sanction adequate funds to NASA to achieve the mission within the stipulated timeline. Considering the current pandemic issue, and the lack of funding, several experts have recently claimed that NASA's plan to land humans on the moon in 2024 is unrealistic.
Beginning of Another Cold War?
The Artemis Accord is actually reinforcing the Outer Space Treaty which was signed by 110 countries in 1967. The space treaty which was signed by world powers like the United States, Russia, and China, barred the usage of weapons of mass destruction on the moon and other space bodies.
The principles put forward by the Artemis Accord are mentioned below.
NASA revealed that more world countries will sign the Artemis Accord in the future, as it will provide a peaceful atmosphere in space exploration.
However, neither Russia nor China has signed the Artemis Accord which is aimed to assure a peaceful atmosphere on the moon, at a time when humans are trying to emerge as a multi-planetary species.
As Russia and China are staying away from the Artemis Accord, several experts believe that it could trigger another Cold War between the United States and its allies on one side, and the Russia-China duo on the other side.
