Portugal Becomes The 60th Nation To Sign NASA’s Artemis Accords.

Lisbon, Portugal; January 2026: Portugal is the latest nation to sign the Artemis Accords alongside 59 other countries in a commitment to advancing principles for the responsible exploration of the Moon, Mars, and beyond with NASA.

“Portugal joins a cadre of nations building the framework for safe, transparent, and prosperous activity in space”, said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman in recorded remarks. “This is our generation’s Golden Age of Exploration. Together, we are advancing innovation, driving international collaboration, and discovering the secrets of the universe”. Portugal’s Secretary of State for Science and Innovation Helena Canhão signed the Artemis Accords on behalf of the country on January 11th.

“2026 is the year in which humans will return to the Moon. It will mark the beginning of a new era of space exploration, reminiscent of the Portuguese explorers of the past, such as Magellan and his circumnavigation of our planet”, said Hugo Costa, executive director of the recently established Portuguese Space Agency, about the signing. “As a nation that approaches space sustainability with great care and responsibility, Portugal and the Portuguese Space Agency are proud to join the Artemis Accords and contribute to the sustainable, beneficial, and peaceful use of space for all humankind”.

A ceremony to recognise the signing was held on Monday in the capital city Lisbon, during a semi-annual meeting between the United States and Portugal to discuss cooperation between the two governments.

“This is a meaningful step forward for responsible space exploration”, said U.S. Ambassador to Portugal John J. Arrigo, who participated in the event. “Shared principles like those in the Artemis Accords are essential to ensuring that space remains a domain of stability, safety, and opportunity for all nations”.

In 2020, during the first Trump Administration, the United States, led by NASA and the U.S. Department of State, joined with seven other founding nations to establish the Artemis Accords, responding to the growing interest in lunar activities by both governments and private companies.

The accords introduced the first set of practical principles aimed at enhancing the safety, transparency, and coordination of civil space exploration on the Moon, Mars, and beyond. Signing the Artemis Accords means to explore peaceably and transparently, to render aid to those in need, to ensure unrestricted access to scientific data that all of humanity can learn from, to ensure activities do not interfere with those of others, to preserve historically significant sites and artifacts, and to develop best practices for how to conduct space exploration activities for the benefit of all.

NASA expresses its confidence, that more countries are expected to sign the Artemis Accords in the months and years ahead.

ARTEMIS ACCORDS –

International cooperation on and around the Moon as part of the Artemis program is taking a step forward today – October 13th 2020, with the signing of the Artemis Accords between NASA and several partner countries. The Artemis Accords establish a practical set of principles to guide space exploration cooperation among nations participating in the agency’s 21st century lunar exploration plans.

“Artemis will be the broadest and most diverse international human space exploration program in history, and the Artemis Accords are the vehicle that will establish this singular global coalition”, said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. “With today’s (13/10/2020) signing, we are uniting with our partners to explore the Moon and are establishing vital principles that will create a safe, peaceful, and prosperous future in space for all of humanity to enjoy”.

While NASA is leading the Artemis program, which includes sending the first woman and next man to the surface of the Moon in 2024, international partnerships will play a key role in achieving a sustainable and robust presence on the Moon later this decade while preparing to conduct a historic human mission to Mars.

The founding member nations that have signed the Artemis Accords, in alphabetical order, are: Australia; Canada; Italy; Japan; Luxembourg; United Arab Emirates; United Kingdom; United States of America

NASA had announced it was establishing the Artemis Accords earlier this year to guide future cooperative activities, to be implemented through bilateral agreements that will describe responsibilities and other legal provisions. The partners will ensure their activities comply with the accords in carrying out future cooperation. International cooperation on Artemis is intended not only to bolster space exploration but to enhance peaceful relationships among nations.

“Fundamentally, the Artemis Accords will help to avoid conflict in space and on Earth by strengthening mutual understanding and reducing misperceptions. Transparency, public registration, deconflicting operations, these are the principles that will preserve peace”, said Mike Gold, NASA acting associate administrator for international and interagency relations. “The Artemis journey is to the Moon, but the destination of the Accords is a peaceful and prosperous future”.

The Artemis Accords reinforce and implement the 1967 Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, Including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, otherwise known as the Outer Space Treaty. They also reinforce the commitment by the U.S. and partner nations to the Registration Convention, the Agreement on the Rescue of Astronauts, and other norms of behavior that NASA and its partners have supported, including the public release of scientific data.

The principles of the Artemis Accords are:

Peaceful Exploration: All activities conducted under the Artemis program must be for peaceful purposes.

Transparency: Artemis Accords signatories will conduct their activities in a transparent fashion to avoid confusion and conflicts.

Interoperability: Nations participating in the Artemis program will strive to support interoperable systems to enhance safety and sustainability.

Emergency Assistance: Artemis Accords signatories commit to rendering assistance to personnel in distress.

Registration of Space Objects: Any nation participating in Artemis must be a signatory to the Registration Convention or become a signatory with alacrity.

Release of Scientific Data: Artemis Accords signatories commit to the public release of scientific information, allowing the whole world to join us on the Artemis journey.

Preserving Heritage: Artemis Accords signatories commit to preserving outer space heritage.

Space Resources: Extracting and utilizing space resources is key to safe and sustainable exploration and the Artemis Accords signatories affirm that such activities should be conducted in compliance with the Outer Space Treaty.

Deconfliction of Activities: The Artemis Accords nations commit to preventing harmful interference and supporting the principle of due regard, as required by the Outer Space Treaty.

Orbital Debris: Artemis Accords countries commit to planning for the safe disposal of debris.

Additional countries will join the Artemis Accords in the months and years ahead, as NASA continues to work with its international partners to establish a safe, peaceful, and prosperous future in space.

Working with emerging space agencies, as well as existing partners and well-established space agencies, will add new energy and capabilities to ensure the entire world can benefit from the Artemis journey of exploration and discovery.

Team Maverick.