The Polish Space Agency (POLSA) has signed an agreement with its US counterpart NASA to cooperate in space exploration, including of the Moon and, potentially, Mars. The agency said it was “another important step” in Poland’s relations with the United States, a key ally.
Yesterday, POLSA’s president, Grzegorz Wrochna, signed the Artemis Accords with NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy at the 72nd International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Dubai. The US-led Artemis programme is an international partnership with the primary goal of returning humans to the Moon by 2024.
Today, we welcome a new member of the #Artemis family: Poland 🇵🇱
Poland joins a growing list of Artemis Accords signees, demonstrating their commitment to joining our efforts to establish a peaceful and safe exploration of the Moon: https://t.co/aBBMDrIw2M pic.twitter.com/N4LzFn852n
— NASA Artemis (@NASAArtemis) October 26, 2021
Poland becomes the 13th country to sign the accords, following Australia, Brazil, Canada, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Ukraine, UAE and the UK. It establishes a framework for space exploration, including of the Moon and Mars.
“We are thrilled that Poland has agreed to endorse the principles espoused in the accords,” said Melroy, quoted by Space News. “These principles will enable the next generation of international partnerships for the exploration of the Moon and beyond.”
“Together with Secretary [of State Antony] Blinken, I welcome Poland as the newest signatory of the Artemis Accords,” added Monica Medina, assistant secretary for the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs at the US State Department.
Wrochna noted that Polish companies and institutions have already long cooperated with NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). Various international space missions over the past four decades have featured more than 80 instruments designed and constructed by Polish scientists and engineers.
But joining the Artemis programme “gives Poland a greater opportunity to participate in multilateral NASA programs related to the exploration of the Moon, Mars, and other celestial bodies”, said POLSA in a statement.
“Can we send a Polish astronaut to the moon? Maybe,” Wrochna said, quoted by Space News. “But I would like to make sure that Polish equipment, Polish instruments will fly to the moon and to other bodies, and I believe that this is the first step for that.”
The Polish space agency also framed its deal in terms of more earthly goals. “This is another important step in building Poland’s cooperation with the United States,” it said. The two countries are now working towards signing a Framework Agreement on Space Cooperation.
POLSA was established in 2014 and tasked with supporting Poland’s space industry by “combining the world of business and science” and promoting space technology for both everyday use and national defence. The country’s space sector now compromises 350 enterprises.
The agency, which is affiliated with the Polish development and technology ministry, expects to spend 1.429 billion zloty (around $360 million) in its first eight years. By comparison, in 2018 alone the US spent $41 billion, Germany $2.15 billion and France $3.16 billion.
Last week, deputy development minister Olga Semeniuk was appointed chairman of the council of POLSA. Her main tasks include shaping Poland’s space policy, implementing the government’s 2017 Polish Space Strategy, and preparing the National Space Program.
Main image credit: PxHere (under public domain)
Maria Wilczek is deputy editor of Notes from Poland. She is a regular writer for The Times, The Economist and Al Jazeera English, and has also featured in Foreign Policy, Politico Europe, The Spectator and Gazeta Wyborcza.
