Crowded, Contested, And more Competitive Than Ever Before!

It’s the year 2079. People can now live in large, self-sufficient colonies outside of Earth because technology has made it possible. Mars is home to a population of close to 700,000 individuals at this point, many of whom were born on the red planet. However, problems are starting to arise. Three countries, the United States, India, and Russia are responsible for the primary homes in the Mars colony.

In a recent vote that was a bit controversial, most of the people on Mars said they wanted to be independent of Earth. They no longer want to be colonies of governments on Earth, but rather a single, self-governing planet. The three countries, however, beg to differ. Russia has already sent warships to Mars to put down the ‘insurrection’ by whatever means necessary, including an armed invasion of Russia- and US-controlled habitat, while the US administration is still debating what to do.

That’s not all!

The Chinese government is doing things on its own. It wants to start a colony on Mars and is now voting for Mars colonists. We are aware of what you are thinking right now.

You might be sceptical because you don’t think space colonization could ever turn into such a mess. There must be rules in place to deal with this kind of chaos. The sad reality is that we don’t.

The Present

More significant changes have occurred in the space sector during the last several decades than at any point since the Cold War ended. Since Sputnik 1 was launched, many countries have made their space defence forces, diversified their space technology, and even put on public shows to show off space weapons that could be very dangerous.

And the ability to get into space is no longer restricted to the world’s superpowers. After paying their dues, outsiders are now welcome to join the conversation. With companies like Stratolaunch Systems, Virgin Galactic, and SpaceX, billionaires like Paul Allen, Richard Branson, and Elon Musk have changed a market that was once dominated by the military contracting industry.

A telescope is no longer necessary to help us appreciate the significance of space. Now that space is a place where nations, companies, and non-traditional actors all play a role, it is more crowded, contested, and competitive than ever before.

What Are The Laws That Apply To Space?

The idea of a legal framework governing space travel is not new. Presently, the United Nations and other international organizations have codified space law as legally enforceable norms.

Property rights, space exploration, salvage rights, damage liability, weapons, protecting the environment, ethics, social duty, and morality are some of the things that are included in this. As more and more businesses look into the potential of space law, there will be an increased need for lawyers who specialize in this area.

It has only been in the last few decades that the study of “space law” has emerged. In 2008, the first certificate program was established. There are a lot of programs and classes that will only become more important over the next few decades.

In a nutshell, space law was established in 1919, and in 1954, international law made it crystal clear that each country had complete jurisdiction over the airspace above it.

In 1960, the International Institute of Space Law was created so that countries could work together to make space law. Since private companies are sending more and more rockets into space, issues of space law are becoming more important to multinational organizations.

Space travel is one thing; establishing colonies in space is a whole other can of worms—or space worms if you will.

Space Colonization and the Law

The closest thing we have to a law that deals with colonization are the Moon Treaty. No nation has officially claimed the moon as its territory as of yet.

The Moon Treaty, also called the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, has been signed or ratified by 17 countries, making it a legally binding international agreement.

Given that the Moon Treaty forbids any kind of private ownership of the moon, one may argue that the moon is a sovereign nation in its own right.

The main problem here is that the people who live on the moon haven’t set up a legal system that works. But what if the moon dwellers established their colony and government, refusing to submit to anyone else’s rule? The world’s leading nations likely wouldn’t accept a sovereign Moon under the terms of the Moon Treaty. Indicative of this is the fact that none of the major colonial powers—the United States, Russia, or China—have ratified the treaty. Indicative of this is the fact that none of the major colonial powers—the United States, Russia, or China—have ratified the treaty.

So you see, managing a space colony will present novel challenges. These issues aren’t completely novel, but their scope is unlike anything in human history. Because while it’s true that space’s geostrategic and economic significance have garnered a lot of attention, one of its most essential features has been generally overlooked: its vastness.

Way Forward

The establishment of the first colony beyond Earth would mark the end of an era and the beginning of a new one, making it one of the most significant events in human history.

As a result, long before such an endeavour would be technically conceivable, mankind should prioritize the establishment of a framework for regulating space colonization.

If we don’t find a reliable way to manage space colonies, we risk undesirable consequences (like stymieing the colonization process), disastrous outcomes (like being unable to populate at all), and catastrophic impacts (like a galaxy full of warring and suffering people).

Legal proceedings, in this case, will have far-reaching effects on the colony’s future. We can’t afford to leave the rule of law up to chance or assume that establishing a democracy that answers to the UN would be enough.

Space colony regulation is a difficult problem with no easy answers; only time will tell.

YLCC would like to thank Pearl Narang for her valuable inputs to this article.