A multinational group wants you to join 'Asgardia' — the first outer-space natio

quote:

---

A new country called Asgardia, named after Norse mythology's city in the skies, could be the first nation ever created in space. The hope is to embark on a mission to mine asteroids and defend Earth from dangerous meteorites, space debris, and other threats.

---

quote:

---

Ultimately, the organizers envision Asgardians building "a state-of-the-art protective shield for all humankind from cosmic manmade and natural threats to life on earth such as space debris, coronal mass ejections and asteroid collisions," according to an emailed press release.

---

quote:

---

Wild would not disclose the organization's current funding level, but claimed Ashurbeyli had put forth a substantial amount of money to get the Asgardia project going. "We're absolutely confident the satellite will launch within 18 months," Wild said. "But in terms of absolute numbers [of money], we're not there yet." Wild would also not disclose how Asgardia's founders plan to acquire cash to fund its future efforts.

---