Why Is the 'Artemis' Signature There When We Can't Participate in the 2024 Moon Landing? (Comprehensive)

Minister Lim Hye-sook of the Ministry of Science and ICT Signed the 'Artemis Agreement' with NASA on the 27th
"We Will Expand Our Role in Follow-up Projects Such as Building a Space Exploration Base After the Moon Landing"

Minister Lim Hye-sook of the Ministry of Science and ICT signed the 'Artemis Accords' with NASA on the 24th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] Lim Hye-sook, Minister of Science and ICT, officially signed the US-led 'Artemis Accords,' which include humanity's second moon landing. As a follow-up measure to the recent South Korea-US summit agreement, although direct participation in the imminent 2024 moon landing is unlikely, it is expected that South Korea will increase its share in subsequent space development programs. The US plans to build a forward base for humanity's space exploration by finding water and resources in permanently shadowed regions through rovers after the moon landing, which will be utilized for future Mars city construction and other purposes.

On the 24th, Minister Lim signed the additional participation agreement with NASA for the Artemis Accords, the Ministry of Science and ICT announced on the 27th. On that day, both sides simultaneously released a photo of Minister Lim signing and a video congratulatory message from Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator.

Artemis is a project the US is preparing to send astronauts to the moon for the first time in over 50 years since the Apollo project in the 1970s. Besides the US, nine countries including Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy, Australia, Canada, Luxembourg, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Ukraine are participating. With this signing, South Korea became the 10th participating country. It is the first under the Biden administration.

Minister Lim said, "With this signing, cooperation between South Korea and the US in the space sector is expected to expand further, and we will participate in various fields in the Artemis program and subsequent space exploration programs." She added, "By leveraging the synergy effect from the end of the South Korea-US missile guidelines on space launch vehicle development, this will also contribute to the growth of the scale and capabilities of South Korea's space industry."

The Artemis Accords are an international agreement led by the US concerning space development, not only for the manned lunar exploration scheduled for 2024 but also for peaceful exploration and utilization of the moon, Mars, comets, and asteroids. They include principles that participating countries in the Artemis program must observe, specifically ▲peaceful exploration ▲transparent mission operations ▲interoperability among exploration systems ▲support in emergencies ▲registration of space objects ▲public disclosure of scientific data obtained during space exploration ▲protection of historical heritage such as Apollo lunar landing sites ▲basic principles on space resource utilization ▲prevention of conflicts in space activities ▲mitigation of space debris.

South Korea has already been a de facto participant. For example, lunar exploration for selecting the 2024 landing site is South Korea's responsibility. Korea's first-ever lunar orbiter (KPLO), scheduled for launch in August next year, carries NASA's ShadowCam. It will explore the permanently shadowed regions near the lunar poles, candidates for the Artemis manned landing sites. South Korea is also participating in the CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Service) program, which involves sending an optical payload developed by the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute on a US private lunar lander around 2023-2024 for lunar surface observation. However, due to time constraints, direct participation in the Artemis project's first main event, the 2024 moon landing, is unlikely.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.