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Legal questions linger as governments and companies keep pushing into space:
The Perseverance rover's landing on Mars is still fresh in people's memories, privately owned companies are ferrying people and supplies into orbit, and NASA continues to work on "the most powerful rocket" it has ever built. But as world governments and private enterprises continue to eye the skies for opportunities, a SXSW panel called "Who on Earth should govern Space" makes clear that the laws dealing with space aren't evolving as fast as the technology that gets us there.
"People like to think of space as the Wild Wild West — nothing out there, there's open frontier, we can do whatever we want," said Michelle Hanlon, president of For All Moonkind, a non-profit devoted to preserving mankind's cultural heritage in space. "Unfortunately or fortunately, that's not true at all."
Hanlon was referring to the Outer Space Treaty, which was developed in 1966 and ratified by over 60 countries in early 1967. Considering the treaty was put into effect a full two years before mankind landed on the moon, it's little surprise that the document is heavy on broad principles, but light on specifics. Among its greatest hits: outer space shall be free for exploration and use by all states; states should avoid harmful contamination of space; celestial bodies shall only be used for peaceful purposes; and, perhaps most importantly, the assertion that outer space isn't subject to claims of sovereignty by Earth-bound governments.
[...] There have been efforts to more fully codify a set of rules to govern the way we approach space, including most recently the Artemis Accords signed by the United States, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, Luxembourg, Italy, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates in 2020. Ten countries are a start, but a slew of significant space-faring states — including China, India and Russia — have not bought into the largely US-brokered accord. It's hard to say exactly what (if anything) it will take for the international community to agree to a comprehensive set of guidelines for the use of outer space. But one thing is clear: With the technology to get us and keep us in space growing more advanced by the day, these are issues we can't afford to keep punting.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday March 22 2021, @07:28PM (8 children)
So to repeat, and enhance my point, Mars depends on a long supply chain from Earth. To make it worse, using your facts, Earth has no direct economic benefit from supporting a colony on Mars. It doesn't make a lot of sense for Mars to try to gain its independence. If Mars has nothing of economic value on its own, it seems it could not independently sustain itself, let alone also put up a fight for independence. Using your your facts, Earth might happily say "okay, you're welcome to your independence! Good luck!"
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(Score: 2) by legont on Monday March 22 2021, @09:14PM (7 children)
Well, Martians could come to Earth and claim their ancestor rights to certain resources. Being tough motherfuckers they might be hard to deal with. Wouldn't the USA be worried about it? Especially if Martian's ideology would depart from the US one.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday March 22 2021, @09:17PM (5 children)
Maybe I could go to Great Britain and try to claim some sort of ancestor rights. That sounds like a good idea. I'm sure they will be very receptive to this.
Some people need assistants to hire some assistance.
Other people need assistance to hire some assistants.
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Tuesday March 23 2021, @09:11AM
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 2) by legont on Tuesday March 23 2021, @01:59PM (3 children)
One does not actually have to go as the important rights would be intellectual and other virtual types.
As per the Great Britain, the US robbed them well after the revolution. I am sure the US remembers the lesson and will try her best to avoid it with Mars.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Tuesday March 23 2021, @02:12PM (2 children)
There was the revolution.
After that, Great Britain and the US have been best friends.
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(Score: 2) by legont on Tuesday March 23 2021, @11:17PM
Not really. After the revolution the US stole all the intellectual property from Great Britain and they were on shaky ground until GB was finally defeated in WWII. Only then they became friends.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday March 24 2021, @06:25AM
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 24 2021, @02:08AM