who owns the moon a space lawyer answers

Full Answer

Do we have rights to the Moon?

Contrary to the very optimistic assumptions made at the time, so far humankind has not returned to the moon since 1972, making lunar land rights largely theoretical. This 1964 file photo from the World’s Fair in the borough of Queens in New York shows a views of a moon colony in the Futurama 2 ride put together by General Motors. AP Photo

Is the legal battle over the Moon Over?

While in my view the former position certainly would make more sense, both legally and practically, the legal battle by no means is over. Meanwhile, the interest in the moon has been renewed as well – at least China, India and Japan have serious plans to go back there, raising the stakes even higher.

What do people ask me when I teach space law?

When people hear for the first time that I am a lawyer practicing and teaching something called “space law,” the question they ask most frequently, often with a big smile or a twinkle in the eye, is: “So tell me, who owns the moon?”

Who was the first person on the Moon?

Edwin E. 'Buzz' Aldrin Jr. poses for a photograph beside the U.S. flag deployed on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission on July 20, 1969. Neil A. Armstrong/NASA/AP Photo

Who is the legal owner of the Moon?

The short answer is that no one owns the Moon. That's because of a piece of international law. The Outer Space Treaty of 1967, put forward by the United Nations, says that space belongs to no one country.

Is it legal to claim the Moon?

There is no claim for sovereignty in space; no nation can “own” space, the Moon or any other body.

Who owns space rights?

No one nation may claim ownership of outer space or any celestial body. Activities carried out in space must abide by the international law and the nations undergoing these said activities must accept responsibility for the governmental or non-governmental agency involved.

What are the 5 space laws?

These five treaties deal with issues such as the non-appropriation of outer space by any one country, arms control, the freedom of exploration, liability for damage caused by space objects, the safety and rescue of spacecraft and astronauts, the prevention of harmful interference with space activities and the ...

Is buying land on moon legal?

Buying land on the moon is illegal as per the Outer Space Treaty, which was designed by the Soviet Union and the United States at the height of the cold war in 1967 to prevent an imminent space colonization race and it has since been signed by 109 nations, including India.

What law governs the Moon?

The Moon Treaty proposes to establish an "international regime" or "framework of laws" that apply to the Moon and to other celestial bodies within the Solar System, including orbits around or other trajectories to or around them. The Moon Treaty lays several provisions outlined in 21 articles.

Can you break the law in space?

State Party to the Treaty on whose registry an object launched into outerspace is carried shall retain jurisdiction and control over such object, and over any personnel thereof, while in outer space or on a celestial body.

Do Earth laws apply in space?

We believe in the free flow of information This gives rise to the question: what criminal law, if any, applies in outer space? The short answer is that, for a US astronaut aboard the International Space Station with a US alleged victim, US criminal jurisdiction applies.

What is the best known picture of a flag ever taken?

Most likely, this is the best-known picture of a flag ever taken: Buzz Aldrin standing next to the first U.S. flag planted on the Moon. For those who knew their world history, it also rang some alarm bells. Only less than a century ago, back on Earth, planting a national flag in another part of the world still amounted to claiming that territory for the fatherland. Did the Stars and Stripes on the moon signify the establishment of an American colony?

What was the prohibition under the Outer Space Treaty?

The very fundamental prohibition under the Outer Space Treaty to acquire new state territory, by planting a flag or by any other means, failed to address the commercial exploitation of natural resources on the moon and other celestial bodies.

What was the significance of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty?

Both superpowers agreed that “colonization” on Earth had been responsible for tremendous human suffering and many armed conflicts that had raged over the last centuries. They were determined not to repeat that mistake of the old European colonial powers when it came to decide on the legal status of the moon; at least the possibility of a “land grab” in outer space giving rise to another world war was to be avoided. By that token, the moon became something of a “global commons” legally accessible to all countries – two years prior to the first actual manned moon landing.

Where is the OSIRIS-REX mission?

The mission launched Sept. 8, 2016, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Is the moon a backwater?

Any suggestion that the moon might become, legally speaking, part of U.S. backwaters might fuel such concerns, and possibly give rise to international disputes harmful to both the U.S. space program and U.S. interests as a whole.

Where was the 1964 World's Fair?

This 1964 file photo from the World’s Fair in the borough of Queens in New York shows a views of a moon colony in the Futurama 2 ride put together by General Motors. AP Photo

Which countries created huge colonial empires?

In particular the Portuguese, the Spanish, the Dutch, the French and the English created huge colonial empires.

The First Outer Space Treaty

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