Abstract

The present article examines the current legal framework governing the exploitation of space resources, as well as the implications of the legal trends set by the 2020 Artemis Accords and by space mining national legislative approaches which recognise private property rights over space resources. The Artemis Accords are intended to (1) assist in the interpretation of the Outer Space Treaty’s provisions concerning the applicability of the non-appropriation of space to the extraction of resources, through the mechanisms established by the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), and (2) extend the scope of the notion of benefits for humankind to include the provision of critical support for safe and sustainable space operations. As such, the Artemis Accords constitute a significant stepping stone aiming toward enabling the commercial mining of space resources. Against this backdrop, the international community faces the decision of whether to join or to object to the Artemis Accords’ space mining regime.
The existing space law lacks an effective legal framework for ensuring equitable sharing of space resources and benefits therefrom. This article argues for the establishment of a robust international legal regime, that safeguards interests in the equitably sharing of the direct economic value derived from space mining, for the collective benefit of the entire humankind, while also establishing a right of ownership to space resources and allowing reasonable financial returns for stakeholders.

This paper will be part of the OGEL Special Issue on "Space Mining: National and International Regulation for and against Commercial Mining of Outer Space Resources". More information here https://www.ogel.org/news.asp?key=819