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The United States is ready to assist India in building its own space station, according to NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, who is making his first visit to the country.
Nelson’s visit will kick off a series of strategic talks aimed at enhancing NASA’s collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
“Touchdown in India! Ready to embark on a week of engaging meetings and events to grow @NASA’s partnership with @ISRO. India is a leader in space and we’re looking forward to a productive visit,” Nelson wrote in a post on X.
Speaking to the media, he congratulated India for landing on the South Pole of the moon, noting that “the US will be sending private landers to the south pole in 2024, but India has already done it.”
He said that “India is a great partner for NASA,” and that the US space agency will help India’s vision to build its own space station by 2040.
“Commercial space stations can open a lot of avenues for research including pharma research in zero gravity. If India wants, we can collaborate and share our experience.”
Nelson is expected to visit the NISAR spacecraft facilities in Bengaluru, marking the first time NASA and ISTo have collaborated on hardware development for the Earth-observing mission.
The NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) mission, which is scheduled to launch in 2024, will be critical for understanding different elements of Earth’s ecosystems, natural disasters, and climate change.
In addition, NASA will prepare an Indian astronaut to fly to the International Space Station in 2024.
The NASA administrator is also set to meet with Indian private companies engaged in the space sector, schools, and discuss STEM to inspire the Artemis Generation of space explorers.
Source:IANS
