“What good is the Moon?” said Ivan Boesky the infamous Wall Street broker, “You can’t buy it or sell it.” Well, he might have been wrong about that. Thanks to mankind’s unflagging desire to go where no man has gone before, questions of who owns what in space, are as plentiful as stars in the Milky Way. Some rules are already in place, thanks to the Outer Space Treaty, drawn by the United Nations nearly 40 years ago. It says no nation can claim ownership of the moon or other celestial bodies. But what about private individuals or corporations? And as earthlings continue to explore a floating treasure chest of satellites, stars, and mineral-filled asteroids, there may soon be more lawyers in orbit than astronauts
Guests:
Joanne Gabrynowicz, Professor of Space Law at the University of Mississippi, Director of the National Remote Sensing and Space Law Center, and Editor and Chief of The Journal of Space Law
Kelly Beatty, Editor of NIght Sky Magazine, and Executive Editor of Sky & Telescope Magazine
Dennis Hope, Founder of the Lunar Embassy, based in Gardnerville, Nevada
Bruce Gagnon, International Coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space, based in Brunswick, Maine.