Rand Simberg
Space Property Rights Initiative
American Western Frontier Developed by Two Acts
- Pacific Railway Act of 1862 — granted railroads land to develop transcontinental lines
- Homesteading Act of 1862 — granted land to settlers who would settle and develop land
Historical context for Outer Space Treaty of 1967
- Decolonization and socialism
IGY - Cold war competition
- For all mankind
- Antarctical model
- Scientific preserve
- No incentive for competion and development
Outer Space Treaty of 1967
- No national soveignity
- NoWMD, nuclear waste placement
- Compares to Antarctic resource development where nations do claim territory
- Did not outlaw private property off planet
- Allows assignment of orbital slots
- Soviets wanted to ban on free enterprise in space, forced to compromise by Johnson Administration
Failed Moon Treaty
- Intent to create unspecified “regime” under which resources could be developed and equitably shared
- Doesn’t apply only to moon – encompasses entire universe other than Earth
- Based on law of the sea treaty
- Onerous UN oversight
- No space-faring nation signed on to it
- New Era
Technology is no longer the main problem - Launch costs will be coming down
- Innovation and competition
- Possible interpretation of the treaty says that we do not have to withdraw from the Outer Space Treaty
- U.S.govt. recognizes a claim on the moon by a non-governmental entity under certain conditions
- Entity is not necessarily American
- Claim will not necessarily be physically defended byU.S.govt.
Conditions
- Permanently occupy the claim
- Affordable transport to and from claim
- Claim must be available on free market
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