Romanian cosmonaut, among the founders of project Asgardia, the first outer-space nation

Romanian cosmonaut Dumitru Prunaru, the only Romanian who has ever flown in outer-space, is one of the international specialists reportedly involved in project Asgardia, which aims to create the first outer-space nation. The name derives from Norse mythology as the city of the skies ruled by the god Odin. The essence of Asgardia is to ensure peace in space, and the prevention of Earth’s conflicts being transferred into space. The nation also plans to mine asteroids and defend Earth from dangerous meteorites, space debris, and other threats. The first Asgardia satellite is planned to be launched in Autumn 2017, sixty years after the first ever satellite launch, and will mark a new era in the Space Age as the satellite will be independent of any current nation state on Earth. The satellite will comprise the nation itself, creating its own legal framework, flag, and other symbols of nationhood. The project team is being led by Russian scientist Igor Ashurbeyli, the founder of the Aerospace International Research Center (AIRC) in Vienna. He has consulted a group of globally renowned scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs and legal experts on the development of the concept. Although the names of the researchers and other experts involved in this project haven’t been made public, Business Insider has revealed the names of four of them: David Alexander — director of Rice University's Space Institute, Ram Jakhu — director of the Institute of Air and Space Law at McGill University, Joseph N. Pelton — director of the Space and Advanced Communications Research Institute (SACRI) at George Washington University, and Romanian cosmonaut Dumitru-Dorin Prunariu. Asgardia’s mission is to democratize space and to “serve the entire humanity and each and everyone, regardless of his or her personal welfare and the prosperity of the country where they happened to be born,” according to Igor Ashurbeyli. “It is of crucial importance that space law does not become the law of the jungle. Today, only 20 countries on Earth out of about 200 have a space presence, and have, for example, plans to mine in space and lay claim to exclusivity and monopoly. We feel that this is not permissible. New space law has to equally protect the interests of every human being on Earth,” he said at a press conference in Paris. Asgardia has already launched a website that aims to convince 100,000 people to register to become citizens of Asgardia alongside their nationality on Earth. “After the first 100,000 applications have been received applications will be closed until the first Asgardia satellite is launched,” Ashurbeyli said. The long-term project includes building a space station where people can live, work, and have their own rules and regulations, according to Business Insider. However, it’s not clear how the project’s founders plan to get financing for it or if an outer-space nation can be set, according to the laws on Earth.