Does the Moon have an owner? Response is surprising!

A Moon It has always been among the desires of great nations. The United States, for example, was the first to carry out a space mission and reach the lunar surface.

However, this does not mean that the country has any rights over Earth’s natural satellite. Discussions about the ownership of the Moon are much more complex than one might imagine.

The immediate answer is simple and direct: no one owns the Moon. What few know, however, is that there is a global treaty that establishes rules on this subject.

It is valid for both the Moon and other celestial bodies.

What does the treaty say?

Visit to the Moon, in 1969, on a United States space mission – Photo: Reproduction

We are talking about Outer Space Treaty. He was created and adopted by United Nations (UN) in 1967 and basically refers to how countries can act in space.

At that time, space technologies were advancing rapidly and there was a true exploration race between opposing nations, such as the USA and the former Soviet Union.

This treaty was created to regularize and anticipate a possible problem. It was the first legal document that stipulated rules for space exploration, and with a basic issue: no nation could claim sovereignty over the Moon.

“Space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, through use or occupation, or by any other means,” says the treaty article.

Private interests

As the text does not mention the action of private individuals, some clever people tried to act, taking advantage of this loophole, and sold parts of the Moon, claiming that they would own it.

The publication Live Science cited, for example, that the president of the Hayden Planetarium, New Yorkeven advertised pieces of the Moon for 1 dollar in 1955.

The treaty has an article (number 12), which can be technically used to prevent this type of action. It stipulates that any installation on the Moon must be open to representatives of the states that signed the document.

Hope’s ‘scam’

Despite these details, an entrepreneur named Dennis Hope also tried to take advantage of the loophole in the law.

The bold man sent a letter to the UN informing that he claimed rights to the surface of the Moon.

He made millions of dollars selling supposed deeds to lunar land.

“I sent the United Nations a declaration of ownership detailing my intention to subdivide and sell the moon and never received a response. There is a gap in the treaty as it does not apply to individuals,” Hope explained to US News.

Many people fell into the blow businessman, including three former presidents of the United States. By 2013, he had managed to sell around 611 million acres on the Moon for $19.95 each.

Experts in the field do not give credit to the letter, nor to Hope’s writings, but cite the obvious failure of the Outer Space Treaty for not foreseeing this type of situation.

The future

With the increase in investment and private interests in exploring the Moon, the future remains open due to the lack of regulation.

The greatest possibility, of course, is that it continues as it is. Countries today are free to create scientific exploration bases there, but are prohibited from naming themselves as owners or possessing any part of the local surface.