• Who Owns the Moon?

    From Lee Lofaso@2:203/2 to All on Wed Mar 17 21:50:18 2021
    Hello Everybody,

    Who owns the Moon?
    Neil Armstrong claimed he wanted to plant the United Nations
    flag on the surface of the Moon, but US President Richard Nixon
    insisted he plant the US flag instead. So, like a good soldier,
    the first man who landed on the Moon did as he was told.

    No other country in the world has planted its own flag on the
    surface of the Moon. Planting the country's own flag on a piece
    of land has always historically meant ownership of that property.
    So does that mean the USA owns the Moon?

    -=begin article=-

    Subject: Axios space

    
    Russia, the United States' long-standing partner in space, is
    turning to China for its lunar ambitions.

    Why it matters: The U.S. and Russia have been uneasy partners in orbit
    for decades, but as the two grow further apart in space, their rift
    could reshape the geopolitical landscape above Earth — and on it — for years to come.

    "We're not going to see the same level of cooperation between the
    United States and Russia, compared to what we saw in the 1990s ...
    when Russia was broke, going through an economic catastrophe after
    the collapse of the Soviet bloc and was desperate," space policy
    expert Bleddyn Bowen told me.

    Driving the news: Last week, China and Russia signed an agreement
    to work together to develop a lunar research station on or orbiting
    the Moon, allying Russia with a nation many see to be in opposition
    to U.S. interests in space.

    The memorandum of understanding comes after Russia declined to sign
    NASA's Artemis Accords governing international cooperation and uses
    of the Moon, and after a Russian official criticized NASA's plans
    to build a small space station in lunar orbit.

    Russia was initially expected to provide an airlock for the small
    lunar space station, which is part of NASA's plans to land people on
    the Moon, but now "NASA will be pursuing other options for the provider
    of the airlock," NASA said in a statement.

    The backstory: U.S.-Russia space relations began to sour in the
    early 2010s when Russia annexed Crimea.

    The two countries' space programs kept them talking via the
    International Space Station, but since then, Russia's public posture
    toward the U.S. on space issues changed, experts say.

    "We saw a marked change in how the Russians interacted in multilateral
    space forums," Brian Weeden of the Secure World Foundation told me.
    There was "a marked increase in the hostility of their language against
    pretty much anything the U.S. was proposing."

    The intrigue: China's space program and industry are booming, with
    support from the government and a long-term vision of what the nation
    hopes to accomplish. Russia's star, on the other hand, is fading.

    Russia is losing a significant source of revenue as SpaceX flies
    astronauts to the space station, ending NASA's reliance on the
    Russian-made Soyuz rocket.

    This partnership with China will allow Russia to work with a nation
    on the rise when it comes to space, while China gets to take advantage
    of Russia's established technical acumen.

    Just as important, if not more, the two powers together will wield
    geopolitical weight in forming international space policy.

    As Europe, Canada, Japan and others are already partnering with the
    U.S. on its Moon plans, the partnership between Russia and China could potentially pull in support from other nations — if they decide they
    want partners.

    What to watch: It's not clear how high a priority the Russia-China
    lunar research station will have as China works to build its own space
    station orbiting Earth in the coming years.

    The division of labor for the two nations hasn't been laid out, and
    there isn't a clear funding source announced yet.

    And experts say that the door isn't necessarily closed for the U.S.
    and Russia to partner with one another in space in the future.

    -=end article=-

    If the matter is now settled as to who owns the Moon, a new issue
    remains. Who owns Mars? Since no country has yet to plant its own
    flag on Mars, a whole planet may be at stake ...

    --Lee

    --
    We Put Big Loads In Tight Places

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  • From David Drummond@3:640/305 to Lee Lofaso on Thu Mar 18 11:48:30 2021
    On 18/03/2021 06:50, 2203/2 wrote:

    No other country in the world has planted its own flag on the
    surface of the Moon. Planting the country's own flag on a piece
    of land has always historically meant ownership of that property.
    So does that mean the USA owns the Moon?

    A long standing tradition does NOT mean that something is right nor desirable.

    --
    Regards
    David

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  • From Björn Felten@2:203/2 to Lee Lofaso on Thu Mar 18 10:42:38 2021
    So does that mean the USA owns the Moon?

    Of course not. Hopefully, The Antarctic Treaty System applies.

    "The treaty sets aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve, establishes freedom of scientific investigation, and bans military activity on the continent."

    Signed by 54 parties, including the USA.


    ..

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  • From Björn Felten@2:203/2 to Lee Lofaso on Fri Mar 19 09:11:10 2021
    He has sold plots on the Moon to at least three US Presidents

    Pray tell, does he have a bridge for sale?



    ..

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  • From David Drummond@3:640/305 to Bj”rn Felten on Sat Mar 20 14:29:36 2021
    On 19/03/2021 18:11, 2203/2 wrote:
     LL>> He has sold plots on the Moon to at least three US Presidents

       Pray tell, does he have a bridge for sale?

    I wondered if a certain orange man was one of those three.

    --
    Regards
    David

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