Who owns the Moon? The age-old question, which has become topical with the start of the space race, is once again a topic of discussion among experts in space jurisdiction.
Muse of sailors and poets, the Moon is not only a source of inspiration for sublime verses and crossings under the stars. The satellite of our planet is in fact the symbol of space ambition, the first celestial body on which man has left his mark. And while the exploration in the name of economy and welfare continues, physiologically the age-old question of territorial claims with the object of the lunar soil has returned to the fore. A topic that has been debated for decades, and that has become absolutely topical with the space race that began in the mid-twentieth century.
To date, there is no precise and detailed law that deals with sanctioning who actually owns the Moon. However, there is another that at least tries to mark the “boundaries”, and that has its roots in the past. We refer to the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, signed and ratified by most of the Earth’s nations, which states that “the Moon is not a subject of national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by use or occupation, or otherwise”. The provisions thus address governments, but do not take into account private individuals – even considering the historical context from which they come.
You will understand then that the Treaty alone was not enough to give regulation to lunar jurisdiction. For this reason, in ’79 they wanted to repeat with the Moon Treaty, more punctual in prohibiting any military and commercial exploitation of any celestial body. More than 40 years later, the Moon Treaty is signed by only 17 nations, and none of these can be defined as an aerospace power. Thus, a dangerous gray area persists, potentially allowing everyone to carve out their own space on the satellite. Not coincidentally, in 2015 the U.S. government passed the Spurring Private Aerospace Competitiveness and Entrepreneurship (or SPACE) Act, legislation that invites U.S. citizens to explore space commercially. With a particular focus on asteroids and the lunar body. De facto, it goes to actively encourage private interests in a place that is – at least according to a late 1960s treaty – no one’s.
What if two different parties decide to establish two bases in the same spot? What if a multinational corporation started extracting lunar water, invaluable for scholarly surveys? Who could claim the resources and find a solution? At this moment, incredibly, there is no answer.
Andrea Guerriero