National Space Legislation for Emerging Space Capable Nations

Abstract

The Space Generation Advisory Council is a non-profit organization that aims to represent the international group of young professionals and students from around the world interested in all aspects of humankind’s understanding, exploration, and utilization of outer space. Within the SGAC membership, those interested in and pursuing education and training related to the legal aspects of outer space established a Space Law Working Group in the summer of 2012. One of the focuses of the group is investigating the role and importance of national space legislation. In addition to many large and established space-faring nations with large space agencies and long heritages of space capability, many more nations are becoming space capable. In the African continent, Nigeria, South Africa, and Maghreb countries are cooperating and coordinating their space activities. In Europe, ESA membership is growing, with Poland to become the 19th Member State in the fall of 2012. Domestic European space agencies are also growing in size and capability. In the future, many new companies and many more countries will increase the size and scope of the space field, including nations with limited space experience. Consequently, the need for rational, efficient, and balanced national space legislation for countries previously lacking it will become more clear and urgent. This paper will first examine existing national space legislation, looking to see common themes and crucial hallmarks. Insights from existing national experience, along with cross-disciplinary takeaways from international relations theory and space policy, and the overriding requirements from public international space law, should intelligently inform the drafting of national space legislation.

Keywords: space, legislation, Federal Aviation Administration, NASA, UKSA, Space Generation Advisory Council