from Hacker News

Outer Space Treaty

by shaaaaawn on 3/31/16, 5:56 AM with 15 comments

• by f_allwein on 4/1/16, 12:40 AM

  > The treaty explicitly forbids any government from claiming a celestial resource such as the Moon or a planet, claiming that they are the common heritage of mankind.

  Interesting that this applies in outer space, but not on Earth...

• by Tsagadai on 4/1/16, 3:07 AM

  It is unlikely this would ever be enforceable once there are permanent settlements on the moon or elsewhere as they could always secede from the UN and any country they were once involved with. Once they claimed independence, weaponizing orbital equipment would be the only real way to displace them (which would also violate the treaty).

  It is more likely to end up like The Expanse series where Mars and then the other planets claim independence from Earth.

• by ericj5 on 4/1/16, 12:51 AM

  Also interesting that this really only prevents governments from claiming resources. What about companies or people?

• by basicplus2 on 4/1/16, 6:11 AM

  Given that no one has real "people based" access to anything beyond earth, I find it incredibly egotistical to have a space treaty. I think perhaps it is driven more from "If anyone gets there before me I still want a piece of it if they get there before me"

  I have no doubt that once a nation, Company, top 1% elite get somewhere out there in space, their language will change and they will say it belongs to them.

  Look at Antartica ... it has already been divided up into regions more or less belonging to different nations despite the retoric.