Prime Minister Narendra Modi's State visit to the United States witnessed another major agreement as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have agreed to a joint mission to the International Space Station in 2024, the White House said Thursday.
India has also decided to join the Artemis Accords, which brings like-minded countries together on civil space exploration.
“On space, we will be able to announce that India is signing the Artemis Accords, which advance a common vision for space exploration for the benefit of all humankind,” a senior administration official was quoted in a PTI report, hours before the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden in the Oval Office.
What are Artemis Accords?
The Artemis Accords, built upon the foundation of the Outer Space Treaty of 1967 (OST), are a non-binding set of principles designed to guide civil space exploration and use in the 21st century. It is an American-led effort to return humans to the moon by 2025, with the ultimate goal of expanding space exploration to Mars and beyond.
The official said that NASA and ISRO are developing a strategic framework for human spaceflight cooperation this year.
In addition, NASA and ISRO have agreed to a joint mission to the International Space Station in the year 2024, said the official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Advanced telecommunications
On advanced telecommunications, the two countries are working together on 5G and 6G technologies, including Open Radio Access Network (RAN) systems.
“Here we'll be announcing partnerships on open ran, field trials and rollouts, including scale deployments in both countries with operators and vendors of both markets. This will involve backing from the US International Development Finance, for cooperation and to promote the deployments in India,” the official said.
Semi-conductors
US companies are partnering with India to build a semiconductor ecosystem that promotes supply chain diversification.
Micron Technology with support from the Indian National Semiconductor Mission announced an investment of more than USD 800 million that together with additional financial support from Indian authorities will amount to a USD 2.75 billion semiconductor assembly and test facility in India.
