A system of property rights in space could speed up scientific discovery and give humanity a greater stake in space exploration, according to a research paper.
In her paper ‘Space Invaders: Property Rights on the Moon’, published by the Adam Smith Institute, political and economic research consultant Rebecca Lower points out that the subject of property rights in space has been up for debate since Yuri Gagarin became the first human being to orbit Earth 60 years ago and US president John F Kennedy spoke of the need to institute the rule of law to “man’s new domain”.
But recent developments, with growing demand for space access by private firms and individuals, suggest this issue “can’t and won’t remain a debate for long”, Lowe said.
Space tourism has already arrived, with companies such as Richard Bransons’s Virgin Galactic, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Elon Musk's SpaceX going into space last year. Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket took 12 passengers, including Star Trek actor William Shatner, on its second flight in October.
Lowe argues that there would be “vast benefits” from creating a clear, morally-justified and efficient system for assigning and governing property rights in space -- in land, in other resources, in the vacuum itself, and in anything else that might be found.
In addition to the financial rewards for the owners under such a system, there would also be benefits relating to incentives for the responsible stewardship of space and opportunities for new scientific discovery and democratised space exploration, according to Lowe.