Real Estate On The Moon: Dream Come True Or Potential Lunar Legal Crisis
It is every child’s dream to travel to the moon one day. Guided by the curiosity of adventure, television shows, cartoons, and movies, the entertainment industry took the dream a step further by planting the idea that humans may one day live upon the moon’s surface and gaze upon the uninhibited sky. The thought of living on the moon is still fresh in the minds of some adults as well, with many believing the technology is here to allow it. However, some have pondered if life on the moon would be worth it and whether it would be a dream come true or a potential lunar legal crisis.
According to the Smithsonian, Martin Elvis is an astrophysicist who researched living on the moon and the pros and cons of making it a reality. He is careful not to sound like a con man attempting to sell swamp land in Florida, instead ensuring interested parties are aware that most of the moon is no different from the rest of the moon.
The landscape is fairly sterile and monotonous, sharing the same views as everywhere else, mostly uninteresting except for the views above. However, Elvis points out that there are some areas known as the Peaks of Eternal Light, places on the moon where the sun never sets, which would be crucial in the use of solar power for homes and businesses.
“The peaks of eternal light are highland regions near the lunar poles that receive sunlight virtually all of the time.”
Real estate on the #moon? https://t.co/3oTqFMhYI2 pic.twitter.com/crnsgNOOUl
— Cara Santa Maria (@CaraSantaMaria) July 16, 2016
Elvis states that the Peaks of Eternal Light would allow for a constant source of essential solar energy, which could jump-start life on the moon by mining the moon’s natural recourses and utilizing the pockets of water in pits of the nearby craters. In addition to being a power source and industrial location, the Peaks of Eternal Light would allow for uninterrupted observation of the sun via the use of radio telescopes, providing integral data to be collected that we cannot capture here on Earth.
The Peaks of Eternal Light were only discovered in 1994 but have been a major focus of scientists since. Now, with space exploration becoming largely privatized throughout the world, many space companies, such as Space X and SpaceIL, are hoping to reach and explore the moon, specifically the Peaks of Eternal Light, with the hopes of claiming ownership of desired spots and beginning the dream of living on the moon.
We could be living on the moon in 10 years or less! Read here: https://t.co/KcCoPLfk6F #outerspace #realestate
— Real Launch (@RealLaunch) July 11, 2016
The dream of living on the moon is one thing, but making it a reality is another. Unfortunately, claiming a spot on the moon as one’s own is not as simple as sticking a flag in the ground and proclaiming ownership. According to the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, as shared by NASA, celestial bodies may be freely explored but are not subject to becoming sovereign property.
“Outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means.”
The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 does not exclude space entrepreneurs from constructing industry, housing, or observational equipment on the moon. However, Article XII of the treaty states that any property on a celestial body, including the moon, is open to visitation from other Earthly parties with advance notice. This means that if you have a home on the moon, anyone from any country has the right to visit your abode and tour it as they please without the option of refusal from the resident. This presents some potential legal issues surrounding the inhabitance of the moon, namely trespassing and property-related issues.
“All stations, installations, equipment and space vehicles on the moon and other celestial bodies shall be open to representatives of other States Parties to the Treaty on a basis of reciprocity. Such representatives shall give reasonable advance notice of a projected visit, in order that appropriate consultations may be held and that maximum precautions may be taken to assure safety and to avoid interference with normal operations in the facility to be visited.”
Despite the possibility of living on the moon being a possibility, would you take the giant leap and be one of mankind’s first to live there, or would you wait for ratification of the Outer Space Treaty, allowing you to claim full ownership of your parcel?
[Image via Mopic/Shutterstock]
