Outer Space Treaty

The Outer Space Treaty bars signatories from placing nuclear weapons or any other weapons of mass destruction in orbit of Earth, installing them on the Moon or any other celestial body, or to otherwise station them in outer space. It exclusively limits the use of the Moon and other celestial bodies to peaceful purposes and expressly prohibits their use for testing weapons of any kind, conducting military maneuvers, or establishing military bases, installations, fortifications. It explicitly forbids any government from claiming a celestial resource such as the Moon or a planet.

Related Topics:
Nuclear weapons - Weapons of mass destruction - Earth - Moon - Celestial body - Outer space

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Treaty was opened for signature in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union on January 27, 1967. On April 25 the United States Senate gave unanimous consent to its ratification, and the Treaty entered into force on October 10, 1967.

Related Topics:
United States - United Kingdom - Soviet Union - January 27 - 1967 - April 25 - United States Senate - October 10

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Ownership of the Moon (and other celestial bodies) is governed by the 1967 Outer Space Treaty and the 1979 Moon Agreement. U.N. legal experts state that the Moon falls under the legal concept of res communis, which means everyone owns it (the concept is also applied to International Waters).

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Article VI states The activities of non-governmental entities in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, shall require authorization and continuing supervision by the appropriate State Party to the Treaty.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The effect of the Outer Space Treaty to restrict control of private property rights, in the way that the law of the sea prevents anyone owning the sea, is often disputed by those who claim the ability to sell property rights on the Moon and other bodies, but this dispute has never been tested in a court of law.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Moon Treaty (Moon Agreement) of 1979 was intended as a follow-up to the Outer Space Treaty.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~