Erdogan: Turkey seeks to launch rocket to the Moon by 2023

Turkey unveiled its national space program, a roadmap based on realistic and competitive goals, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
"The national space program will carry our country to an upper league in the global space race," Erdogan stressed during the introductory meeting in Ankara.
The program outlines Turkey's 10-year vision, strategies, objectives, and projects on space policies, he noted.
"The primary and most important mission of the program is to make the first contact with the Moon in our republic's centennial year [2023]," Erdogan said.
Noting that the goal will be completed in two stages, Erdogan said that at the first stage, a rough landing would be made on the Moon with a national and authentic hybrid rocket that will be launched into orbit at the end of 2023 through international cooperation.
"When completing this task, we will be one of the countries that have managed to reach the Moon, and we will gather necessary information for the second stage of the mission," Anadolu Agency cited him as saying.
At the second stage in 2028, the initial launching, which carried our probe to orbit, will be made through Turkey's own rockets, Erdogan noted, adding: "As we make a soft landing on the Moon, we will be one of the few countries that could conduct scientific activities on it."
The Moon Program will leverage Turkey's breakthroughs in launch, rocket, and control technologies, he underlined.
Noting that the program's second goal is to create a trademark on the new-generation satellite development, he said the country would gather satellite production activities under a single authority coordinated by the TUA.
Latest news
Latest newsThe United States Rapidly Expands Missile Production: Pentagon Accelerates Output of Tomahawks and Other Critical Weapons
24.Aug.2026
Record Supplies: Armenia Boosts Fish Exports to Georgia
23.Aug.2026
Political Battle During Wartime: Zelensky Opposes Elections
23.Aug.2026
Romania Approves Construction of One of the Largest Solar Power Plants in Europe
23.Aug.2026
Ex-Ukrainian Defence Minister Fails in Bid to Pressure Zelenskiy
22.Aug.2026
Upper Lars: Why Border Queues Have Become a Political Signal for Georgia and Russia
22.Aug.2026
Russia-Ukraine War: No Decisive Breakthrough on the Front and Intensifying Ukrainian Deep Strikes on Russia
21.Aug.2026
TRIPP, Peace, and a New Geopolitical Crossroads: How Armenia Has Changed One Year After Washington
20.Aug.2026
Tokayev Updates Kazakhstan Foreign Policy Concept: Astana Strengthens Its Strategic Multi Vector Approach
19.Aug.2026
Ukraine Turns Ground Robots into a New Tool in the Fight Against Russia
19.Aug.2026
Tehran Threatens a New Round of War After Talks With the US Collapse
18.Aug.2026
Drones Over Moldova: Accident or a New Threat to National Security?
17.Aug.2026
Spanish F-18 Fighter Jet Shoots Down Drone That Violated Romanian Airspace
17.Aug.2026
The Black Sea Becomes a Risk Zone: Can Turkiye Protect Key Trade Routes?
16.Aug.2026
Ukraine Intensifies Long-Range Strikes: Flamingo Missiles Hit a Rocket and Space Center and Airbase in Russia
15.Aug.2026

24 Aug 2026


