Context: NASA has formally invited ISRO to participate in its Moon Base programme, aimed at establishing humanity’s first outpost on another celestial body near the lunar South Pole. The invitation builds on India–U.S. space cooperation under the Artemis Accords and follows the successful NISAR mission.
Explanation
- NASA’s Moon Base programme seeks a sustained human presence on the Moon, particularly around the lunar South Pole, where permanently shadowed regions may contain water ice, important for life support and potential fuel production.
- Artemis programme is NASA’s broader initiative for human return to the Moon and long-term lunar exploration, involving international and commercial partners.
- Artemis Accords are non-binding principles for peaceful, transparent and sustainable civil exploration of the Moon, Mars, comets and asteroids; India became a signatory in 2023.
- NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) is a joint Earth-observation satellite using L-band and S-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR).
- India–U.S. cooperation also covers human spaceflight, commercial space activities and long-term sustainability of outer space under the UN COPUOS framework.
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