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Principles for a Safe, Peaceful, and Prosperous Future in Space

NASA, in coordination with the U.S. Department of State and seven other initial signatory nations, established the Artemis Accords in 2020.  With many countries and private companies conducting missions and operations around the Moon, the Artemis Accords provide a common set of principles to enhance the governance of the civil exploration and use of outer space.

The Artemis Accords reinforce the commitment by signatory nations to the Outer Space Treaty, the Registration Convention, the Rescue and Return Agreement, as well as best practices and norms of responsible behavior for civil space exploration and use.

This graphic displays the flags of the nations that have signed the Artemis Accords against a background image of the Moon in the blackness of space. The graphic is titled “Artemis Accords.” The words, “United for Peaceful Exploration of Deep Space” appear on the bottom of the image
On Oct. 25, 2024, Chile became the 47th nation to sign the accords. The commitments of the Artemis Accords and efforts by the signatories to advance implementation of these principles support the safe and sustainable exploration of space.
NASA

Peaceful Purposes

Artemis II mission specialist Jeremy Hansen, left, pilot Victor Glover, commander Reid Wiseman, and mission specialist Christina Hammock Koch stand in front of their Orion crew module on Aug. 8, 2023, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
NASA/Kim Shiflett

International cooperation in space is intended not only to bolster space exploration but to enhance peaceful relationships between nations.

Therefore, at the core of the Artemis Accords is the affirmation that cooperative activities should be exclusively for peaceful purposes, consistent with the Outer Space Treaty.

Transparency

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson delivers remarks during an Artemis Accords signing ceremony, Sept. 14, 2023, at the German Ambassador’s Residence in Washington.
NASA/Keegan Barber

Transparency is a key principle of responsible civil space exploration, and NASA has always taken care to publicly describe its policies and plans.

The Artemis Accords signatories are committed to upholding this principle by broadly disseminating information regarding their own national space policies and space exploration plans.

Interoperability

Gateway in lunar orbit around the Moon
An artist’s concept of the Gateway. The lunar space station will be humanity’s first space station around the Moon as a vital component of the Artemis missions to return humans to the lunar surface for scientific discovery and chart the path for the first human missions to Mars.
NASA

Interoperability of systems is critical to ensure safe and robust space exploration.

Therefore, the Artemis Accords signatories commit to use reasonable efforts to utilize current interoperability standards, to develop new standards when necessary, and to follow such standards.

Emergency Assistance

Artist concept of Artemis astronaut stepping onto the Moon.
Artist’s concept image of an Artemis astronaut stepping onto the lunar surface.
NASA

Providing emergency assistance to those in need is a cornerstone of any responsible civil space program.

Therefore, the Artemis Accords signatories commit to taking all reasonable efforts to render necessary assistance to astronauts in distress, and the signatories reaffirm their obligations under the Rescue and Return Agreement

Registration of Space Objects

Commercial landers will carry NASA-provided science and technology payloads to the lunar surface
Artist’s concept of commercial lander that will carry NASA-provided science and technology payloads to the lunar surface.
NASA

Registration is at the very core of promoting safety and sustainability in space activities. Appropriate registration of space objects can help to facilitate consultation and coordination, where appropriate, to avoid harmful interference among activities.

The Artemis Accords reinforce the critical nature of registration and signatories commit to coordinate regarding registration for cooperative activities involving space objects.

Release of Scientific Data

Elevation (left) and shaded relief (right) image of Shackleton, a 21-km-diameter (12.5-mile-diameter) permanently shadowed crater adjacent to the lunar south pole. The structure of the crater's interior was revealed by a digital elevation model constructed from over 5 million elevation measurements from the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter.
Elevation (left) and shaded relief (right) image of Shackleton, a 21-km-diameter (12.5-mile-diameter) permanently shadowed crater adjacent to the lunar south pole.
NASA

NASA has always been committed to the timely, full, and open sharing of scientific data. Artemis Accords signatories commit to the open sharing of scientific data and plan to release scientific results publicly so that people around the world can benefit from the journey of exploration and discovery.

Preserving Outer Space Heritage

Buzz Aldrin's boot making a footprint on the moon
A close-up view of an astronaut’s boot and bootprint in the lunar soil, photographed with a 70mm lunar surface camera during the Apollo 11 lunar surface extravehicular activity (EVA).
NASA

Preserving historically significant sites and artifacts will be just as important in space as it is here on Earth.

Under the Artemis Accords, signatories intend to preserve outer space heritage, including historically significant sites and artifacts.

Space Resources

An artist’s illustration of two suited crew members working on the lunar surface. The one in the foreground lifts a rock to examine it while the other photographs the collection site in the background.
An artist’s concept of two suited crew members working on the lunar surface.
NASA

The ability to extract and utilize resources on the Moon, Mars, and asteroids is critical to support safe and sustainable space exploration and development.

The Artemis Accords reinforce that space resource extraction and utilization can and should be executed in a manner that complies with the Outer Space Treaty and in support of safe and sustainable space activities.

Deconfliction of Space Activities

An illustration of astronauts on the Moon.
An artist’s concept of astronauts on the Moon.
NASA

The Artemis Accords also provide for operational implementation of important obligations the Outer Space Treaty, including those related to due regard and harmful interference.

Artemis Accords signatories will provide public information regarding the location and general nature of their operations. In addition, signatories commit to seek to refrain from any intentional actions that may create harmful interference with each other’s use of outer space. They’ll do so through “safety zones”, in which signatories intend to provide notification of their activities and commit to coordinating to avoid harmful interference. The size, scope, and duration of safety zones will reflect the nature of the operations being conducted based on scientific and engineering principles. Safety zones will be temporary, ending when the relevant operation ceases. The signatories commit to respect the Outer Space Treaty principle of free access in their use of safety zones, as well as the principle of due regard.

Orbital Debris

This view of the north polar region of the Moon was obtained by NASA Galileo camera during the spacecraft flyby of the Earth-Moon system on December 7 and 8, 1992.
This view of the north polar region of the Moon was obtained by NASA’s Galileo camera during the spacecraft flyby of the Earth-Moon system on Dec. 7th and 8th, 1992.
NASA

Preserving a safe and sustainable environment in space is critical for both public and private activities.

The Artemis Accords signatories commit to plan for the mitigation of orbital debris, including the safe, timely, and efficient disposal of spacecraft at the end of their missions.

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A sunrise view of the Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on March 21, 2022. The SLS and Orion atop the mobile launcher were transported to the pad on crawler-transporter 2 for a prelaunch test called a wet dress rehearsal. Artemis I will be the first integrated test of the SLS and Orion spacecraft. In later missions, NASA will land the first woman and the first person of color on the surface of the Moon, paving the way for a long-term lunar presence and serving as a steppingstone on the way to Mars.