Turkish Space Agency

The Turkish Space Agency (TUA — Türkiye Uzay Ajansı), established in 2018 by Presidential Decree in Ankara, is Turkey's national space agency responsible for coordinating and implementing Turkey's National Space Program (2021-2023, extended through 2030) — an ambitious 10-goal roadmap announced by President Erdoğan in February 2021 that outlined Turkey's intentions for satellite manufacturing, a national launch site, lunar exploration, and ultimately crewed spaceflight capability.

Turkey's existing space infrastructure predates TUA: Türksat A.Ş. (established 1990) operates Turkey's GEO telecommunications satellite fleet for broadcasting and broadband across Turkey, the Balkans, the Middle East, and Central Asia. GÖKTÜRK-1 (2016, Airbus-built, 0.8-meter resolution optical satellite) and GÖKTÜRK-2 (2012, domestically developed with Roketsan/TAI) provide military and government Earth observation imagery for the Turkish armed forces and intelligence services. The domestic development of GÖKTÜRK-2 represented a significant step in Turkey's satellite manufacturing capability, with TÜBİTAK UZAY (Space Technologies Research Institute) leading the technical development.

TUA's National Space Program goals include developing an indigenous satellite bus technology family, establishing a Turkish space launch site (a coastal equatorial site for efficient GTO orbital insertion), landing a Turkish spacecraft on the Moon by 2023 (revised after missing initial timeline), training Turkish astronauts for ISS missions (Alper Gezeravcı flew to ISS aboard SpaceX Crew Dragon in January 2024 — Turkey's first astronaut in space), and eventually developing crewed spaceflight capability.

Turkey's defense aerospace industry — dominated by companies including Roketsan, ASELSAN, TAI, and TUSAŞ — provides an existing industrial base for space technology development. TUA also participates in ESA's Plan for European Cooperating States (PECS) as a step toward potential ESA European Cooperating State membership.