Hi, my name is Thea Flem Dethlefsen and I work for the European Space Agency.
Today I would like to tell you a bit about space law.
Just like on Earth we have laws in outer space that tells us what states are allowed to do.
These laws were made at the United Nations Committee
for the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space
and they were made to make sure that space was used for peaceful purposes
and for the benefit of all humankind. The main treaty is called the Outer
Space Treaty and it says that everyone shall have access to use and
explore outer space, as long as they follow the
rules in the space treaty and in international law in general.
That means that states are not allowed to send up weapons of mass destruction
into outer space and they may also not harmfully contaminate another planet.
The Astronaut Rescue and Return agreement says that states shall render
all possible assistance to an astronaut in distress.
We also have a Liability Convention because, just like on Earth,
if an accident occurs, we want to know who is liable for the damages.
The Liability Convention tells us that if the accident occurs in outer space
we have to look at who is at fault. The registration convention
says that states shall register their space objects.
This way, we can have a better overview over the man-made activities in outer space.
And finally, we have the Moon Agreement.
It has some principles about how we should conduct our
activities in outer space. However, one of the concepts is a bit
controversial, called the common heritage of mankind
about how we should manage and own the Moon.
Therefore, no space-fairing nation has ratified this agreement.
Have you ever watched a clip of the first Moon landing where
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin planted the American flag on the Moon?
Maybe you thought about what this meant, because back in the day when you planted
a flag it indicated that this new territory was
yours. However, no one owns outer space
so planting your flag there won't have this effect.
That's because Article 2 of the Outer Space Treaty says
that outer space is not subject to national appropriation
by sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by
any other means. Article 1 says that outer space is the province of all
mankind. So if you go to outer space you're not
allowed to bring back your own souvenir because space belongs to all of us.
Astronauts are also not allowed to own their own space
souvenir, but what other laws would apply if we imagine that they live in an
international Moon base? If we imagine that the Moon base
consists of different modules, and that each member state had their own
module, then it would be the national law of
that member state where, for example, a criminal activity is
conducted, that would apply on board that module.
Now, if we compare the international Moon base to the International Space Station,
then we can imagine that member states would like to make a similar
intergovernmental agreement, where they agree on how they shall conduct their
activities on board and it would include principles such as
peaceful uses and international collaboration.
Now when the astronaut go outside of the Moon base and onto the lunar soil,
it will be the same space treaties that I was talking about
earlier that would apply. That means that if an astronaut wants to conduct a
scientific experiment they have to make sure that they do not
interfere with the activities of other astronauts,
both current and in the future. It also means that if a criminal
activity occurs outside the base then it would be
international criminal law that we also know from Earth
that would apply.
When we go somewhere new
and we have to build a new base, then the easiest way is to use the materials that
are already, there instead of having to bring
everything with you from home. This is especially true
when we're talking about distances to the Moon.
Here we can use space resources such as dust
and rocks to use as construction and if you would like to know more about this
then you can check out the ESA educational video on space resources.
Now for the legal side of it, what we're looking at is how to regulate
it so that all states have fair and equal access to space resources
and that it's done in a sustainable way.