Türkiye to host world's largest space congress in 2026

The scenic resort of Antalya on the Turkish Riviera will host the 77th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in 2026, the country's industry and technology minister has announced.

"Türkiye won the race, and Antalya will host the world's largest space congress in 2026. May it be beneficial to our country and nation. This is our shared success and source of pride," Türkiye's Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacir said during a technology event on Friday.

Stressing that everyone who believes in Türkiye's future can make great contributions to such successes, he said science, research and development, innovation, and entrepreneurship all play important roles in scaling even more heights in the decades ahead.

"The awareness of space among the Turkish people and our young people will increase greatly. Türkiye also aims to reach the moon in 2026. We will crown this step with the congress. Türkiye’s place in the world space community will rise much higher,” Serdar Huseyin Yildirim, head of the Turkish Space Agency (TUA) said.

GUHEM as world's premier space museum

Türkiye having two astronauts, one of which will go to space soon, is an exciting development, said a NASA astronaut who will pilot the Artemis II mission and go to the Moon.

Moonwalkers Victor Glover and Rusty Schweickart, who talked about their experiences in space during the "Planetary Congress" organised in Türkiye's Bursa province, carried out a similar duty with the Apollo 9 mission in 1969.

Also providing information about the developments regarding the Artemis II mission, the astronauts spoke to Anadolu Agency on the sidelines of the congress organised by the Association of Space Explorers (ASE) and hosted by Gokmen Space Aviation Training Center (GUHEM) in northwestern Bursa province.

Glover stated that the event organised by ASE and hosted by GUHEM was special and that the conference is held in different countries every year, adding that it was his first time visiting Türkiye and that it was very special for the conference to be here.

Stating that Turkish people should be proud to host the event, Glover continued his speech as follows: "It really excites me that Türkiye has two astronauts in training. One of them will go to space very soon," he said.

Schweickart, who tried the Moon simulator during his visit to GUHEM, pointed out that it was interesting to move without gravity on Earth thanks to the simulator and explained that although it was difficult to move horizontally, it was fun. Glover also said the simulator was great and that moving up and down easily in "no gravity" was perfect.

Schweickart highlighted GUHEM's standing as one of the premier aviation and space museums globally.

Glover said that GUHEM was very impressive and that they stated that trying sample space-related mechanisms was a great experience for children. Noting that this is a real learning method and inspiring, Glover added that he was very happy to be able to see GUHEM.