Specifically, the head of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has asked NASA to coordinate with other agencies in the US Government to come up with a plan to establish Lunar Coordination Time (LTC) by the end of 2026.

Gravitational forces and other factors on the Moon and other celestial bodies cause time on these planets to differ from Earth. Having a standard LTC time could provide a time measurement standard for spacecraft and lunar satellites, which require extremely high precision when conducting missions in deep space.

Without LTC, it would be difficult to ensure secure data transmission between spacecraft and synchronize communications between Earth, lunar satellites, bases and astronauts, an OSTP official said. The time difference could also lead to errors in mapping and locating locations on or around the Moon, the official said.

Therefore, the deployment of atomic clocks on the lunar surface is necessary, especially when commercial activities expand to the Moon. Establishing a unified time standard will help coordinate activities and ensure logistics management.

Through the Artemis mission, NASA aims to send astronauts to the Moon in the coming years and establish a scientific base there, paving the way for future missions to Mars. Dozens of companies, spacecraft, and countries are involved in the effort.
In January 2024, NASA announced plans to launch Artemis 3, which will land astronauts on the Moon in September 2026, after the first Apollo mission in the 1970s. NASA is planning to launch Artemis 2, which will take four astronauts around the Moon and return them to Earth in September 2025.

According to OSTP, establishing a common standard for lunar time would benefit all nations in the space race. However, countries will need to reach a common agreement through the Artemis Accords, which govern how space and the moon will operate. There are currently 36 countries that have signed the accords.