NASA and Europe have officially signed an agreement to build an orbiting moon base

Gateway station

On Tuesday, NASA announced that it had formally partnered with the European Space Agency (ESA) to build the space station Gateway, which plans to launch into orbit around the moon.

Moving forward, the entrance station – it should allow Long-term lunar exploration By serving as a middle ground between space and the lunar surface – an international endeavor, a NASA News Release. After helping to establish a human presence on and around the moon, the joint project will help both NASA and the ESA eventually reach Mars.

Moving quickly

Construction of the Gateway space station could begin by 2022. NASA has already done the work for the contractors Including SpaceX And Maker Technologies, But will now share the remaining burdens with the ESA. ESA has agreed to provide new modules for the gateway and spacecraft, from which it will be able to improve passenger and lunar communications and refuel the gateway.

“In short order, we will move human spaceflight from low Earth orbit to the moon for the first time since 1972,” wrote NASA executive Jim Bridenstein. An agency blog post.

There are a lot to come

Brightenstein pointed out in his blog post that more international agreements in support of the Artemis project will be announced soon.

“We are advancing the pending cooperation established by this joint International Space Station toward the moon,” Bridenstein said in a statement. “Gateway continues to expand NASA’s cooperation with international partners such as ISA, ensuring safe and consistent exploration of the Moon after and beyond the early human lunar landing of the Artemis program.”

read more: NASA’s International Partnership, Artemis Group to design lunar probe [NASA]

Gateway More: NASA commissiones SpaceX to deliver lunar gateway space station