Overview
- The U.S. Embassy announced Tuesday that NASA has formally invited the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to participate in its Moon Base programme under the Artemis framework.
- The two governments agreed to advance negotiations on open scientific data sharing under the Artemis Accords, opening a formal channel for joint research and public data exchange.
- Officials said the invitation was extended at the ninth India‑US Civil Space Joint Working Group meeting in Bengaluru, but they did not identify specific missions, systems, timelines, or technical contributions from ISRO.
- The offer builds on recent cooperation such as the NISAR Earth‑observation mission, India’s Chandrayaan lunar successes and Indian participation in commercial astronaut flights, which together show ISRO’s growing role in deep‑space work.
- Next steps include bilateral talks under TRUST and CSJWG to define roles, governance and technical agreements, with the key outcomes to watch being any signed contribution plans, launch schedules, and data‑sharing protocols.