Jordan has a growing space program, having launched the JY1 satellite in 2018, a CubeSat developed by university students that transmitted images and audio from orbit after launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The country also operates a privately funded analog research facility in Wadi Rum, where the Jordan Space Research Initiative conducted PETRA1 and PETRA2 missions in 2024 and 2025.
The Artemis Accords, established in 2020 by the United States and seven other founding nations, set principles for responsible lunar exploration. Signatories commit to explore peaceably and transparently, render aid, enable access to scientific data, ensure non-interference, and preserve historic sites.
It is my privilege to welcome Jordan as the newest signatory to the Artemis Accords.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman welcomed Jordan as the newest signatory, stating, "It is my privilege to welcome Jordan as the newest signatory to the Artemis Accords." He added that Jordan brings "valuable perspective and capabilities that will help expand the Golden Age of exploration for all mankind." Ambassador Kawar noted that "Jordan has more engineers per capita than almost any country in the world" and that the signing "is proof that this ambition has no ceiling."
By signing the accords today, Jordan brings valuable perspective and capabilities that will help expand the Golden Age of exploration for all mankind. They join at a pivotal moment, as we take the accords principles and put them into practice with humanity’s return to the Moon. Through Artemis, we’re going back to the lunar surface, with contributions from our international partners, to build a Moon Base and to stay.