NASA will soon provide advanced training to Indian astronauts to send a joint mission to the International Space Station this year or shortly thereafter, US envoy to India Eric Garcetti has said. Garcetti made these remarks while speaking at the "US-India Commercial Space Conference: Unlocking Opportunities for US & Indian Space Startups," hosted by the US-India Business Council (USIBC) and the US Commercial Service (USCS) in Bengaluru on Friday.
“NASA will soon provide advanced training to Indian
astronauts, with the goal of mounting a joint effort to the International Space
Station, hopefully, this year or shortly thereafter, which was one of the
promises of our leaders' visit together," Garcetti said.
“And soon we will launch the NISAR satellite from ISRO’s
Satish Dhawan Space Center to monitor all resources, including ecosystems, the
Earth’s surface, natural hazards, sea level rise, and the cryosphere,” Garcetti
said, according to a USIBC press statement issued here.
NISAR is a joint Earth-observing mission between NASA and
the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
“You see whether it’s the pursuit of peace and the peaceful
use of space, things like the Artemis Accord, we are hand in hand, arm in arm.
When it comes to prosperity and jobs, which is a big part of this conference
today, it can be produced by startups in this sector, good-paying, high-tech
jobs for Indians and for Americans. Space is right there,” Garcetti said.
The Artemis Accords lay out a framework for collaborating
nations’ safe exploration of the moon and beyond.
The day-long event in Bengaluru saw the participation from
senior officials from both the US and Indian governments, including Garcetti,
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman Dr. S Somanath,
representatives from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA),
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Government of
India, as well as prominent leaders from the commercial space industry,
industry stakeholders, venture capitalists, and market analysts.
“I must salute the visionary leadership that we have in both
nations in India and the US for engaging in such an accord which looks at the
moon as a sustainable place for all of us to come and work together,” Somnath
said in his remarks.
“The connection between the Indian partners and also the US
partners in critical technologies and specifically in the space sector is
really becoming stronger. And I’m very happy about that type of engagement and
the options available to the industries and the US business indigenous to
connect with India in the emerging space sector as well,” he said.
Expressing optimism about the prospects of US-India
collaboration in space, USIBC president Atul Keshap described it as a new
chapter in the US-India space partnership. This week has been particularly
fruitful, with USIBC and USCS joining forces to champion these two iCET space
deliverables, he said.
“The conference highlights the deepening synergy between our
two free nations in pioneering space exploration and innovation by the leading
democracies. Through strategic alliances and collaborative efforts, we’re on
the brink of achieving extraordinary milestones and expanding the horizons of
space exploration beyond what we once imagined,” Keshap said.
The US-India Commercial Space Conference underscores the
importance of fostering strategic partnerships to drive innovation and propel
the space industry forward,” said USIBC managing director Alexander Slater.
“This is the next step in USIBC’s continued commitment to
fostering bilateral cooperation among leading companies and startups from both
countries to unlock new opportunities for economic growth, job creation and
technological leadership. It builds on our work in February when we hosted the
second edition of INDUS-X in New Delhi, which promoted similar opportunities
for innovation and cooperation in new and emerging defence technologies,” he
said.
Meanwhile, senior defence officials from India and the US
have met in Washington to discuss opportunities to strengthen space cooperation
and identified potential areas for collaboration with the American industry.
Meeting for the second annual US-India Advanced Domains
Defence Dialogue (AD3), the officials discussed a wide range of bilateral
cooperation.
The American team was led by Vipin Narang, Acting Assistant
Secretary of Defence for Space Policy, and the visiting Indian delegation was
led by Vishwesh Negi, India’s Joint Secretary for International Cooperation.
During this year’s Dialogue, Narang and Negi discussed
opportunities to strengthen space cooperation and identified potential areas
for collaboration with US industry, said Department of Defence Spokesperson
Cmdr. Jessica Anderson.
Among a group of US and Indian defence officials, the two
co-chaired the first US-India principal-level tabletop discussion that explored
areas to enhance cooperation in the space domain.
They agreed to advance AD3 through regular working group
discussions.
The visiting Indian Government delegation also engaged with the US Space Command, the Joint Commercial Operations Cell, and artificial intelligence experts from across the US Department of Defence, Anderson said.