NASA legal expert says Slovenia is growing space nation

Married to a NASA astronaut with Slovenian roots, Bresnik was present at an event last week where Slovenia signed the Artemis Accords, an international agreement on the civil exploration and peaceful, safe and sustainable use of the Moon, Mars, and other planets.

The associate general counsel for international and space law at US space agency NASA, she is part of the Artemis project, which aims to send another crewed mission to the Moon, the first since Apollo 17 in 1972.

The program's long-term goal is to establish a permanent base on the Moon to extend the frontiers of space exploration and facilitate human missions beyond the Moon, including to Mars.

She is excited that Slovenia has become the 39th country to sign the Artemis Accords. "By participating in the Accords, Slovenia demonstrates its commitment to international cooperation in space exploration and joins global efforts to ensure peaceful and sustainable use of space, which is key in the golden age of star exploration.

"We are also looking forward to learning how Slovenia might want to contribute to the Artemis campaign," Bresnik told the STA, noting that the country has the know-how and experience when it comes to space technology.

Lauding breakthroughs by Slovenian space companies, she said they "really grabbed the attention of your population and promoted awareness among the international public that Slovenia is a growing space nation".

She pointed out that having visited several Slovenian faculties, she noticed the interest in space is quite significant and growing.

"The fact that you had domestic space legislation before the launch [of satellites] shows that you care about being a responsible space actor," she said.