Who Officially Owns The Moon???

Bill Gates owns the moon.




Possession is 9/10's of the law. Whoever starts to occupy the Moon first basically "owns" the moon. If they want to anyways.

Lets say Somalia launches a ship next week and sends a million people to the Moon (could happen). They set up a society and start expanding and making it their home. Well, the rest of the world doesn’t get to that point for another 50 years or so. When they land, you think the Somali's are obligated to give up their hard earned land? NOPE.

It will work just like it did when not all land had been discovered/settled on Earth.

DAMN SOMALI"S!!!

There really isn't any simple answer to this. Arguably, the US landed there first, planted their flag, and claimed the moon, so it belongs to the US. However, international treaties have stated that any use of the moon is to be for the betterment of all nations, so it could be said that it belongs to the human race in general. However, there's also conspiracy theorists out there that would say we were chased off of the moon by an alien race that already inhabited it, so in that case, the moon would belong to aliens. There's also the notion that humans have never actually set foot on the moon, and if that's the case, nobody owns it.

I really think the definition will depend on what you believe, and none of them really have strong enough cases to hold up in court. Ultimately, it's going to come down to who starts building the first colony there, and whatever the legal ruling is as to ownership. Chances are, any effort to put a colony there will be made up of several nations, therefore probably best supporting the idea that the human race owns the moon, and not any singular country.

[edit on 29-4-2005 by obsidian468]

Originally posted by obsidian468

I really think the definition will depend on what you believe, and none of them really have strong enough cases to hold up in court. Ultimately, it's going to come down to who starts building the first colony there, and whatever the legal ruling is as to ownership. Chances are, any effort to put a colony there will be made up of several nations, therefore probably best supporting the idea that the human race owns the moon, and not any singular country.

[edit on 29-4-2005 by obsidian468]

Yes as a first step you're probably correct, and the moon belonging to the human race seems a nice idea.

But it seems very different when you look at specific (possible) examples such as; let's say that the French were to land and start setting up a small permanent base in the Sea Of Tranquility (the site of the first US landing I think). What will happen then ? Will the US will say to France "OK that's cool, that site is yours now" ?? I don't think so.

So the principle of who got there first will probably always be forefront, particularly if the proposed sites of the moon colonies happen to be old Apollo landing sites or contain underground ice or mineral reserves.

You guys can debate over who owns the moon forever, I don't care, because.....
I got first dibs on Jupiter!! Cuz I said it first!! Nyah nyah!!

The Moon belonging to the human race I think is a B.S. idea, even if that sounds harsh. That kind of rhetoric is just a way in which poor countries can catch a free ride for things another country has discovered.

That's like if the United States risks its own people and spends its own money in making some big discovery out in the ocean, which then the world tries to claim it should be for the benefit of everyone. Baloney I say.

Same with the Moon. You spend all the money (billions), do all the research, risk your own people, and make a startling discovery, there should be NO obligation that it should be for the benefit of "all humankind." It should be for the benefit of whatever parties do the research and the finding.

If china goes to the Moon in 20 years (just making a random example) and makes some big discovery ("HEY, we found OIL on the Moon!!!!!"), then the world shouldn't say, "Well that belongs to the rest of the world, not China." It is very rightfully China's, as they spent the money and risked the people and found it). The other countries, like the United States, if oil on the Moon is a big deal, than just have to spend their own money and go to the Moon to find oil, UNLESS China is willing to share it. But I mean, no discovery made in space by a single country belongs to the whole world.

That is just writing made by the international organizations because they want to hitch a free ride on the discoveries made by other nations. If those nations that make the discoveries are willing to share their discovery with the other nations, great. If not, they shouldn't have to.

Now, after all that, I would NOT say the U.S. "owns" the Moon or anything, as the Moon wasn't "discovered," it was there. The United States went there in the name "of all Mankind." And it didn't find any big discoveries there or anything. And even if it HAD found big discoveries (some valuable mineral), I wouldn't say the MOON is the U.S.s, just that area of the Moon where they made the discovery they could lay claim too. Now I do think the U.S. would be upset about another country landing and claiming the spot where the U.S. landed. It would be highly disrespectful. But that is all debatable. If another country was making plans to head to said spot and claim it, I think the U.S. would ahve to step forward and say, "We claim that area as ours," which technically would be true, as the other country had yet to arrive and claim it.

That is my opinion.

It makes sense about the "no weapons" in space thing because countries like to protect themselves. If they fear some nation may put big weapons in space and then threaten them and they cannot do anything to prevent this militarily, you try it the other way----diplomatically.

Like how China is against the U.S. missile defense system. If every country had the money to put weapons or a missile defense system in space, every country would. Those that cannot, but feel threatened by the ones that possibly can, try to make politics that say not to do this.

Personally, my view is, if you go into space and you make a big discovery that is beneficial to all humanity, well, place it under YOUR ownership so that some other greedy country can't come in and try to take it away or anything, but share it if it is really beneficial. But share it because you want to, not because you feel you have to.

[edit on 30-4-2005 by Broadsword20068]

I read it somewhere...but McDonalds owns the moon.

If china goes to the Moon in 20 years (just making a random example) and makes some big discovery ("HEY, we found OIL on the Moon!!!!!"), then the world shouldn't say, "Well that belongs to the rest of the world, not China." It is very rightfully China's, as they spent the money and risked the people and found it).

Im sure the US would love that!

I think within 50 yrs there will be either war or very close to war on Earth due to the discovery of something worth alot of money!

If china goes to the Moon in 20 years (just making a random example) and makes some big discovery ("HEY, we found OIL on the Moon!!!!!"), then the world shouldn't say, "Well that belongs to the rest of the world, not China." It is very rightfully China's, as they spent the money and risked the people and found it).

Well, no, but China would be the only nation whom the oil is available to, so it might as well all be theirs. Once another nation get's there they'll probably try to get in on it, saying the land isn't theirs and China will say back off. (P.S. - no oil on the moon)

Originally posted by MickeyDee
I think within 50 yrs there will be either war or very close to war on Earth due to the discovery of something worth alot of money!

Possibly. But, given the fact that keeping your nation alive is worth a lot of money, I can't prove you wrong.

I'm just gonna send myself and some amazon companions up and shoot down (or up?) anyone else who tries to land. Problem solved, the Moon shall be mine... MUAHAHAHAHA

I dunno... the Moon is probably going to be like Antarctica.. noone really wants to set up a colony down there and call it their own, but sometimes a small camp is a good investment. And all the camps basically just play in their own yards and sometimes talk to eachother, but they all know they are just guests and eventually they will be going home. Yeah, the Moon will most likely be the same deal.. that is until massive corporations take over and we end up with a giant orbiting PepsiCo logo.

Originally posted by apc
I dunno... the Moon is probably going to be like Antarctica.. noone really wants to set up a colony down there and call it their own, but sometimes a small camp is a good investment. And all the camps basically just play in their own yards and sometimes talk to eachother, but they all know they are just guests and eventually they will be going home.

So... we should send the boyscouts?

The Antarctica analogy is a very good one, I just hope we make more use of it than we did ol' Anty.

[edit on 5/5/2005 by Amorymeltzer]

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Hate to burst the bubble - but I already BOUGHT the Moon!! It's now in my bedroom, with my Sea Monkeys and x-ray specs!!

Don't be hatin' on the sea monkeys. Those things are awesome. I had a culture once for weeks, and my grandmothers cleaning lady stopped by and threw them out thinking it was dirty water. :shk:

So sad.

The Antarctica analogy is a very good one, I just hope we make more use of it than we did ol' Anty.

The Moon will not be used like Antarctica, it will merely be a stepping stone to Mars etc...

At first we may have small labs, but there is no real need for them.

I think the Moon should have a launch platform and the facilities to house astonauts while their spacecraft are refueled. Once refueling is complete then we could relaunch them and send them to Mars or where ever we are exporing at that time.

Yes Mars relays will be one of the 'camps' I talked about. The Moon is a pretty big place.. there will be mining camps, manufacturing camps, research camps, observation camps, experimentation camps, etc etc etc. If you prefer colony that is synonymous here. Once travel to the Moon is commercialized and relatively cheap (shortly after the commercialization of space) there will be countless ventures possible. Textile industries could set up camp and discover an even more amazing use for the Lunar soil than we know. Medical research could advance decades utilizing the relatively cheap to maintain low gravity environment. I hope to be able to atleast watch the first Lunar Buggy Races!
Im saying that in relation to ownership, there will be tons and tons of stuff going on up there, by everyone. Not just government mandated or even corporate space-agency operations for interplanetary studies and whatnot.

It'd be nice to let the Welsh own it. Then we can let them move there, one by one and pretty soon the world would be a better place!!

Not really, I love you Welsh! ;-)

Originally posted by Nairod
It'd be nice to let the Welsh own it. Then we can let them move there, one by one and pretty soon the world would be a better place!!

Not really, I love you Welsh! ;-)

But theres no grass for all the sheep to graze!

oops sorry!!! Love them really!

Originally posted by Broadsword20068
It makes sense about the "no weapons" in space thing because countries like to protect themselves. If they fear some nation may put big weapons in space and then threaten them and they cannot do anything to prevent this militarily, you try it the other way----diplomatically.

It's not a "no weapons in space" treaty. The treaty says that the exploration and use shall be for weapons-free, peacefull purposes.

Technically we all own the moon, But the US has shown quite the propensity for doing whatever it pleases.

... But the US has shown quite the propensity for doing whatever it pleases.

Well.. wouldn't you?

I am curious to see just how much land will be annexed by whatever US government agency sets up shop first. Im guessing several sizable chunks.

I am curious to see just how much land will be annexed by whatever US government agency sets up shop first. Im guessing several sizable chunks

Will the US 'classify' the Apollo sites and further fuel the notion that man has never been to the moon?