In June, a fledgling nation elected its first parliament. With more than 250,000 citizens, the new country's population is bigger than that of Samoa.

It boasts a flag, constitution and anthem. The catch? Asgardia, the first-ever "Space Kingdom", is not a country on Earth. It's based on a satellite currently in low Earth orbit.

Asgardia is the brain child of Igor Ashurbeyli, a Russian-Azerbaijani scientist and engineer.

Ashurbeyli has long been fascinated with space, but it was his work with nanotechnology that earned him a UNESCO medal in 2016. He's now the "head of nation" of Asgradia – first self-appointed, later confirmed by Asgardia's "citizens" in an online vote.

Asgardia's coat of arms bears the motto "One Humanity, One Unity", and this is Ashurbeyli's vision: a new nation, free of geographical divisions, with the "opportunity for infinite development".