Asgardia, also known as the Space Kingdom of Asgardia and Asgardia the Space Nation, is a "virtual nation" formed by a group of people who have launched a satellite into Earth orbit. They refer to themselves as "Asgardians" and they have given their satellite the name . They have declared sovereignty over the space occupied by and contained within Asgardia -1. The Asgardians have adopted a constitution and they intend to access outer space free of the control of existing nations and establish a permanent settlement on the Moon by 2043.
Igor Ashurbeyli, the founder of the Asgardia Independent Research Center, proposed the establishment of Asgardia on 12 October 2016. The Constitution of the Space Kingdom of Asgardia was adopted on 18 June 2017 and it became effective on 9 September 2017.Ashurbeyli, Igor. Decree No. 9. 9 September 2017. Retrieved 24 December 2017. Asgardia's administrative center is located in Vienna, Austria.
The Cygnus spacecraft that carried Asgardia-1 into space released Asgardia-1 and two other satellites on 12 November 2017. The Space Kingdom of Asgardia has claimed that it is now "the first nation to have all of its territory in space." Legal scholars doubt that Asgardia-1 can be regarded as a sovereign territory and Asgardia has not yet attained the goal of being recognised as a nation state.Leah Crane. The 'space nation' Asgardia just launched its first satellite. — New Scientist, 13 November 2017.Dave Mosher. The 'space kingdom' Asgardia says it's the first nation with all of its territory in orbit—but legal experts are dubious. — Business Insider, 8 December 2017.
Etymology Asgardia is taken from the name of one of the Nine Worlds in the Norse religion: Asgard (). Home to the Æsir tribe of gods, Asgard is derived from Old Norse áss, god and garðr, enclosure; from Indo-European roots ansu- spirit, demon (see cognate ahura; also asura) and gher- grasp, enclose (see cognates garden and yard), essentially meaning "garden of gods."; See also ansu- and gher-1 in "Appendix I: Indo-European Roots" in the same work.
History Asgardia Independent Research Center The Asgardia Independent Research Center (AIRC), formerly the Aerospace International Research Center, was founded by Igor Ashurbeyli in 2013. In 2014, the AIRC began the publication of an international space journal, ROOM, of which Ashurbeyli is the editor-in-chief. On February 5, 2016, Ashurbeyli was awarded the UNESCO Medal for contributions to the development of nanoscience and nanotechnologies during a ceremony held at UNESCO headquarters, Paris. AIRC AAS is the only institute in Austria whose activity is fully dedicated to the research of the Solar System, extraterrestrial life and the Earth using space technology and satellite techniques.
Since 2013, the AIRC staff constructed, developed and prepared for launch over 30 instruments and participated in the experiments in 15 space missions, for example: ESA's mission Mars Express, Rosetta (mission to a comet), Venus Express, BepiColombo (mission to Mercury) and CNES' DEMETER and TARANIS missions. AIRC has also collaborated with NASA for the IBEX mission. In 2015, the AIRC established a close collaboration with Asgardia.
Founding
On 12 October 2016, Ashurbeyli announced in a press conference in Paris, France, "the birth of the new space nation Asgardia."Daniel Clery. Space oddity: Group claims to have created nation in space. — Science Magazine, 12 October 2016Scientists plan to create 'Asgardia' nation state in space. — BBC, 13 October 2016Dave Mosher. A multinational group wants you to join 'Asgardia' — the first outer space nation with a mission to defend Earth. — Business Insider Australia, 13 October 2016
The ultimate aim of the project is to create a new nation that allows access to outer space free of the control of existing nations. The current space law framework, the Outer Space Treaty requires governments to authorise and supervise all space activities, including the activities of non-governmental entities such as commercial and non-profit organisations; by attempting to create a nation, those behind Asgardia hope to avoid the tight restrictions that the current system imposes.Sarah Knapton. Scientists propose space nation named ‘Asgardia’ and cosmic shield to protect Earth from asteroids. — The Telegraph, 12 October 2016
It officially calls itself the "Space Kingdom of Asgardia." "Asgardia" was chosen as a reference to Asgard, one of the nine worlds of Norse mythology; the world that was inhabited by the gods.
People were invited to register for citizenship in 2016, with the aim of Asgardia then applying to the United Nations for recognition as a nation state. In less than two days, there were over 100,000 applications; within three weeks, there were 500,000. After tougher verification requirements were introduced, this declined, and stood at around 210,000 in June, 2017. There is no intention to actually move these members into space. Asgardia intends to apply for membership of the UN.How Does a New State or Government Obtain Recognition? — Asgardia, 21 March 2018
The Constitution of the Space Kingdom of Asgardia was adopted on 18 June 2017 and it became effective on 9 September 2017.The Constitution of the Space Kingdom of Asgardia
The Cygnus spacecraft that carried Asgardia-1 into space released Asgardia-1 and two other satellites on 12 November 2017. The Space Kingdom of Asgardia has claimed that it is now "the first nation to have all of its territory in space." Legal scholars doubt that Asgardia-1 can be regarded as a sovereign territory and Asgardia is not recognised as a nation-state.
As of March 2019, Asgardia says that it has more than 290,000 citizens and more than 1,040,000 followers around the world.Space Kingdom of Asgardia. Asgardians around the world. — Asgardia.Space, as at 29 March 2019
Governance The Constitution of Asgardia divides Governance of Asgardia into three branches: (1) a legislative branch named the "Parliament," (2) an executive branch named the "Government," and (3) a judicial branch named the "Court."
Parliament The Parliament is composed of 150 nonpartisan members and each member is referred to as a "Member of Parliament" (MP). The Members of Parliament elect one Member to the office of "Chairman of the Parliament." The Members of Parliament also appoint the "Chairman of the Government." The Parliament has 12 permanent committees; the Chairman of Parliament of Asgardia is Mr. Lembit Öpik.
Executive branch The Head of Nation is the most senior official of the executive branch (i.e., the Government). The Head of Nation is elected to a 5-year term of office. The Head of Nation may dissolve the Parliament and may then order the holding of parliamentary elections. The Head of Nation may initiate legislative proposals and may veto acts adopted by the Parliament. The Head of Nation may issue decrees that must be obeyed by governmental bodies and by the citizens of Asgardia. The Head of Nation is Igor Ashurbeyli.
The Chairman of the Government supervises 12 Ministers. Each Minister supervises the operation of one Government Ministry. Each of the permanent committees of Parliament monitors the operation of one Government Ministry. The Parliament may invite Ministers to attend meetings of the Parliament.Government of AsgardiaProsperity in the stars. — Room, The Space Journal, Issue No. 4 (18), 2018
Judicial branch The judicial branch includes a "Supreme Justice," who supervises the operation of four judicial panels: (1) a "constitutional" panel, (2) a "civil" panel, (3) an "administrative" panel, and (4) a "criminal" panel. The Supreme Justice is appointed by the "Head of Nation." The "Justices" who serve on the judicial panels are appointed by the Parliament.
Asgardia's Supreme Justice is Zhao Yun. Zhao, head of the Department of Law at The University of Hong Kong, was appointed as Asgardia's Supreme Justice on 24 June 2018 during the first parliamentary session in Vienna, where he was introduced to the elected Members of Parliament.
Mayoral elections The mayoral elections took place in the period between 1 August – 9 September 2018. Based on the results of the first stage of mayoral elections of Asgardia, offices were taken by mayors of 44 cities from 12 October 2018. The Head of Nation delegated to continue elections of the mayors of Asgardia until the Parliament passes the Bill "On Mayors of Asgardia" from 12 October 2018. Until the Parliament has passed the Bill "On Mayors of Asgardia," elected mayors will report to the Head of the Nation of Asgardia.
Key people Head of Nation — Igor Ashurbeyli The Chairman of Parliament — Lembit Öpik Head of the Government — Lena De Winne Supreme Justice — Zhao Yun
Space activity
Asgardia intends to launch a series of satellites into Earth orbit. Its first satellite was successfully launched by Orbital ATK on 12 November 2017 as part of an International Space Station resupply mission. It was a two-unit CubeSat measuring at a weight of , manufactured and deployed into orbit by NanoRacks, and has been named . The overall goal of the mission was to demonstrate the long-term storage of data on a solid-state storage device operating in low Earth orbit. The spacecraft had a 512 gigabyte solid-state storage device. The data stored in this device was to be periodically checked for data integrity and function."Asgardia-1 Satellite Technical Description", page 1. Federal Communications Commission. Before the launch, the data storage device was loaded with things like family photos supplied by the first 1,500,000 members of Asgardia. After the spacecraft reached orbit, data could be uploaded or downloaded using the Globalstar satellite network.
was boosted to space and then deployed by US companies on a NASA-funded mission so the satellite falls under US jurisdiction. Asgardia intends to partner with a non-signatory to the Outer Space Treaty (OST), perhaps an African state such as Ethiopia or Kenya, in the hopes of circumventing the OST's restriction on nation-states claiming territory in outer space. The satellite was expected to have a lifetime of 5 years before its orbit decays and it burns up on reentry. On 12 September 2022, Asgardia-1 reentered the atmosphere.
A continuously updated map that shows the location of in its orbit was hosted by NearSpace Launch, Inc.NearSpace Launch, Inc. "Asgardia-1 Tracker" . Retrieved 12 January 2018. (NORAD satellite identification number 43049) is also being tracked by Satflare.Satflare.com. Current location of .
Often described as a billionaire, Ashurbeyli has said that he is currently solely responsible for funding Asgardia, and that members will not be funding the planned first satellite launch. Although the cost has not been made publicly available, NanoRacks have said that similar projects cost $700,000. The project intends to move to crowdfunding to finance itself. Sa'id Mosteshar, of the London Institute of Space Policy and Law, says this suggests that Asgardia lacks a credible business plan. A company, Asgardia AG, has been incorporated, and members can buy shares in it. Asgardia wants to enable its founders' companies to use Asgardia's satellite network for their own services and business activities. These are to be settled via the crypto currency Solar and the reserve currency Lunar.WIRED Germany: So wird eine außerirdische Blockchain die Menschheit zu den Sternen führen