Commercial lunar activites

Under Article II of the Outer Space Treaty, the Moon (like everything else in space) is not subject to national appropriation by claims of sovereignty for any reason. Some interpret this to mean that nothing in space may be subject to appropriation by parties other than the international community, while others interpret Article II’s specific reference to “national appropriation” to place no restraints on private actors, such as corporations.

The Moon Agreement goes further though, explicitly stating in Article 11 that “[n]either the surface nor the subsurface of the moon, nor any part thereof or natural resources in place, shall become property of any State, international intergovernmental or non-governmental organization, national organization or non-governmental entity or of any natural person.” Article 11 of the Moon Agreement also contemplates “an international regime, including appropriate procedures, to govern the exploitation of the natural resources of the moon".”

Perhaps foreseeing the drawbacks of this, all the major spacefaring nations (including the US and Russia) refused to sign the Moon Agreement. And indeed, these countries are currently laying the groundwork for commercial exploitation of the Moon and other space objects, such as asteroids, by means of domestic laws and multilateral international agreements such as the Artemis Accords.

S. 10 of the Accords specifically contemplates and permits the appropriation and privatization of space resources, “including any recovery from the surface or subsurface of the Moon.”

What law governs Mars? ->