{"id":3042,"date":"2016-09-05T17:43:32","date_gmt":"2016-09-05T17:43:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/?p=3042"},"modified":"2021-10-05T17:44:43","modified_gmt":"2021-10-05T17:44:43","slug":"8-facts-you-didnt-know-about-space-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/2016\/09\/05\/8-facts-you-didnt-know-about-space-law\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Facts You Didn\u2019t Know About Space Law"},"content":{"rendered":"
Did you know that there was a time when land owners owned the vertical space that extended from their property all the way up into space! With the advent of air travel, the laws had to change. Governments then decided that land owners would own their land up to 500 feet above ground level and anything above that, going up infinitely, would be owned by the government. This helped to govern air space for the airlines\u2026 until the space program was introduced and a whole new set of concerns were born.<\/div>\n

Since spacecraft now travel around the earth, they traverse\u00a0the orbits of many countries. It was ultimately decided that a country\u2019s laws\u00a0end somewhere between where the highest airplane can fly and where the lowest\u00a0satellite orbits, approximately 19 to 99 miles above the Earth. In accordance\u00a0with the space laws, no country can claim the sovereignty of the moon or other celestial body. That is to say that no country can enforce its\u2019 laws on the\u00a0moon or in outer space. This gave way to what is known as Extraterritorial\u00a0Jurisdiction, or the legal ability of a government to exercise authority beyond\u00a0its normal borders, and into space.<\/p>\n

The advent of Space Laws, which have been around since the\u00a01960\u2019s, led to more questions about the governing of space. Some questions are\u00a0quite simple to answer. \u201cWhat would happen if someone committed a crime on a\u00a0spacecraft?\u201d If an astronaut committed a crime on a spacecraft, they would be\u00a0subject to prosecution by the country of their spacecraft. While others are a bit more vague. \u2018What if that person committed a crime on the surface of the\u00a0moon?\u201d Since no single governing body owns the moon, the answer is less clear\u00a0cut. However, Space Laws are instrumental in the effective functioning of\u00a0today\u2019s space community. Here, we examine a few space law facts.<\/p>\n

Fact #1: <\/strong>The term \u201cspace law\u201d refers to the national and\u00a0international laws and customs that govern our activities in outer space. The\u00a0basis for today\u2019s space laws began with the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. This\u00a0treaty established several principles that have since been broadened in\u00a0subsequent treaties and laws that define the outer space legal landscape today.<\/p>\n

Fact #2: <\/strong>\u201cThe exploration and use of outer space shall be\u00a0carried on for the benefit, and in the interest of, all mankind.\u201d This holds\u00a0true for everyone, regardless of economic or scientific development. All\u00a0celestial bodies and outer space are free for exploration and use by all States\u00a0and freedom of scientific investigation id encouraged.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Fact #3:<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cThe moon and other celestial bodies shall be used\u00a0exclusively for peaceful purposes and no weapons of mass destruction are\u00a0permitted in outer space.\u201d Part of the original Outer Space Treaty, this\u00a0article assures that no nuclear, or other mass destruction weapons may be\u00a0carried or installed on any celestial body or space station. While scientific\u00a0research is encouraged, including military missions that are used for peaceful purposes,\u00a0the testing of weapons or the practice of military maneuvers on celestial\u00a0bodies is forbidden. In space, peace rules!<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Fact #4:\u00a0<\/strong>\u201cStates shall retain jurisdiction and control of\u00a0their space objects and any personnel thereon.\u201d This refers back to the question\u00a0of what would happen to someone who commits a crime in space. While crime in\u00a0space has not been much of a problem, astronauts are pretty amazing people\u00a0after all who take pride in their work, it is important to know that should a\u00a0crime be committed, the State who governs the spacecraft would be responsible\u00a0for the prosecution of the crime.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Fact #5:<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cStates shall be liable for damage caused by their\u00a0space objects.\u201d This one is pretty simple. It\u2019s the basic \u201cyou break it, you\u00a0bought it\u201d philosophy. Well, maybe not quite that simple but the basis applies.\u00a0States are responsible for fixing any damage that they cause while in outer\u00a0space.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Fact #6:<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cStates shall avoid harmful contamination of outer\u00a0space.\u201d \u00a0This one is just bit more\u00a0complicated. While the Outer Space Treaty encourages scientific exploration in\u00a0outer space, this article was written to help avoid harmful contaminations or\u00a0adverse changes to the environment while pursuing those scientific endeavors.\u00a0As outer space is a delicate environment, introducing matter from our world can\u00a0be a detriment to the moon or other celestial bodies. We want to keep space\u00a0pristine and clean!<\/p>\n

Fact #7:<\/strong>\u00a0The International Space Station is a cooperative\u00a0program between Europe, the United States, Russia, Canada, and Japan. Home to\u00a0crews of astronauts and cosmonauts from several nations, the International\u00a0Space Station\u2019s laws are governed by three levels of the International Space\u00a0Station Agreement, or IGA. Typically, those aboard the ISS are governed by the laws of their respective countries. So, in layman\u2019s terms, if a US astronaut\u00a0commits a crime on the ISS, they are subject to punishment by the US. However,\u00a0as with other laws, there are exceptions to this rule. For example, if a US\u00a0astronaut were to commit a crime against a Canadian counterpart on the ISS,\u00a0they may be subject to prosecution by Canada.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Fact #8:<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Human beings\u00a0will soon be able to travel into outer space on spacecraft operated by private\u00a0companies. The first of these flights are being researched now and are expected to begin by taking passengers on orbital spaceflights to the International\u00a0Space Station. Of course, commercial spaceflights for humans will open up a\u00a0whole new world of legal issues. The FAA is already working on licensing and\u00a0safety criteria for private spacecraft and four states, Florida, New Mexico,\u00a0Texas, and Virginia have already passed laws limiting space tourism under state\u00a0laws.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

With advances in technology continue to thrive, and more and\u00a0more work is done to expand space travel and exploration, Space Laws continue\u00a0to take on greater importance today. While the space law community will surely\u00a0face challenges, Spaceflight laws and lawyers will be at the forefront of\u00a0helping the space community. Very exciting times indeed!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Did you know that there was a time when land […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[58],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3042"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3042"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3042\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3044,"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3042\/revisions\/3044"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3042"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3042"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intergalacticbar.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3042"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}