Expert challenge: who owns space?
Dr Kenneth Harris has loved reading your comments on the Hub that he has decided to set you a challenge! Play the video to find out about what he’d like you to discuss next.
Over to you!
Dr. Kenny would like to see you answer the following questions:
- Who owns things that are in space, like stars, planets and asteroids?
- Is it the people that find them or is it the people that bring the materials back to Earth?
- Should the value be shared with everyone on Earth?
Remember to read other people’s ideas. Do you agree or disagree? Or could you suggest something else?
We look forward to seeing what you’ve got to say!
Comments (43)
Well, I will fulfill your request, Dr. Kenny, and I will answer your questions in my own way.
1 Who owns things that are in space, like stars, planets and asteroids?
It belongs to all of us, and God created it for us to benefit from .
2 Is it the people who find them, or is it the people who bring the materials back to Earth?
I think that these things are found by certain people who are assigned to do so and who have to examine and see them.
3Should the value be shared with everyone on Earth?
I believe that value should be shared by those who care about these things .
Thank you for your responses.
As for your response to question 2, what if the people who find them are different from the people who bring the materials back to earth? Who should have a better claim for these materials?
As for your response to question 3, should the value be shared by everyone who care about these things, even if they did not put in any effort to finding or bringing back these materials? Would this be 'fair' to the people who spent time and resources to find and bring back these materials?
Seeing you from another perspective is correct, and thank you for responding to my comment, your answer inspired me a lot and in the third question especially I agree with you and I look at the question again and say that it is never fair, and share the value of the people who spent the time finding these materials.” Together to make the choice Better".
1.why do people believe and try to take ownership over space, who owns Earth? Is that established? No, because nobody owns it so why should anyone own the galaxy.
2.People who find them are scientists exploring materials from space ,however does this create a divide in the social class as the price per ticket to go to space is $450,000 so not everyone has this financial opportunity
3.I do not believe that values from space should be shared with everyone on Earth and to begin with I don't think materials from space should be exported into Earth, due to change in atmosphere it may reveal changes in the materials due to the pressure on Earth
I agree because all the things that is existing beyond the earth is God that actually created them, a normal human being can't create what is in space because all the heavenly bodies in space are unique and too precious for any random person to create. Astronauts are the people that studies what is in space and comes down back to earth to examine and educate young minds on what is found and believed in space, the value should definitely be shared to everyone in order to know what is out there and know the people who are passionate about what is outside there and rise potential astronauts to discover the undiscovered discoveries in space.
Well, technicaly god owns everything but physicaly I think that no one can own a whole piece of mass in space because there's no sovereignty in outer space so the Atmosphere of earth not being a limit or the furthest point that man can travel to doesn't necessarily mean that everyplace that man can reach is an owning of humankind and also god created earth for humans so he only specified earth for humans but humans are capable of manythings and one of those many things is evolving in many differ ways, in technology and engineering and science and all these things helped for them to go beyond their limit to explore and expand humankind in other places in space.
1.I think nobody owns space as it is not in our world
2.I think it’s the people that found them
3.I think scientists should have it to look into it and then tell everyone if it’s important
I think nobody owns space because nobody knows who founded space because other people could of found it first.
Thank you for your responses.
As for your response to question 2, what if the people who find them are different from the people who bring the materials back to earth? If only the people who find them get to own these materials, then do you think this would be fair to people who spend a lot of resources to physically bring these materials back to earth?
Thanks smart_nectarine!
Can you explain why you think the people that found them should own them?
I disagree because... space couldn't just form itself, someone had to create it for our benefits, I understand that people have their own beliefs and ideas about the world but most times let's try and face reality and not what science tells us bacause science had to start from somewhere to tell us all this things we believe about space.
I don't want to contradict anyone's belief but for me I have come to understand that God has given us this things to explore and to enjoy.
From a religious perspective, God is the one who owns space, but from a scientific perspective, and according to my belief, every explorer of space is one of its owners, such as NASA, for example.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this!
How do you think we can help ensure the benefits of space are shared with everyone, not just those who can afford to explore it like NASA as you mentioned?
Indeed, it is not easy because that requires studies and experts in this field, but this can be done through electronic programs and experts accredited by space agencies who can help draw the world’s attention to the benefits of space, but we cannot ignore NASA because it is one of the most important space agencies and the biggest example Indicative of its greatness is the "James Webb" telescope.
There is no claim for sovereignty in space; no nation can “own” space, the Moon or any other body. Weapons of mass destruction are forbidden in orbit and beyond, and the Moon, the planets, and other celestial bodies can only be used for peaceful purposes
That was determined in the 1950s by a UN committee, and laid out a decade later in the Outer Space Treaty. No country can lay claim to the moon, asteroids or other celestial bodies; space is open to all for exploration.
Secondly, if any object falls from space and is found, I think it will be returned to the government to carry out research on it that may benefit humanity, and this is what whoever finds it cannot do.
Very insightful comment, and I really appreciate that you referenced the Outer Space Treaty in your response.
I understand that the treaty states that no one owns space, or rather, outer space is not subject to "national appropriation by claim of sovereignty". But do you think this extends to the question of whether anybody can benefit from the materials in space (for example, if a country were to gather materials from an asteroid)?
Separately, do you think that there should be an absolute ban on going into space and gathering materials? What if these materials could greatly benefit humanity?
Humans did not evolve to go into space, but we go there anyway. That has led to the development of various technologies that feed back into the economy and improve our lives on Earth. Without space programs, we wouldn’t have GPS, accurate weather prediction, solar cells, or the ultraviolet filters in sunglasses and cameras. There’s also medical research happening in space right now that could cure diseases and prolong human lives, and these experiments can’t be done on Earth. Space exploration could save your life.Speaking of saving lives, space exploration could save all our lives. The solar system has calmed down a lot since the early eons, but there are still an unknown number of big asteroids and comets out there that could smack into the planet and make the COVID-19 pandemic seem like a pleasant memory. It’s not a matter of if another large asteroid hits Earth, but when. A robust space program is the only hope we have of deflecting such an object. If we’re not working toward that goal, humanity already has an expiration date. NASA is currently making plans to run a spacecraft into an asteroid to test one possible method of saving Earth from such an impact.There are currently almost 8 billion humans, which is a lot. However, we’re all crammed together on this one planet. If something happened to Earth, our species could be wiped out. For example, the aforementioned asteroid impact. Colonizing other bodies in the solar system (or building our own orbiting habitats) is a way to create a “backup” of humanity that will survive no matter what happens to Earth. Maybe future humans will be Martians who will never set foot on Earth. The technology to make that possible and sustain people independently of Earth isn’t going to develop itself.Every use of space is for the benefit of man.
But there is one thing
The exploration of space is for a human motive, and if the matter goes beyond that, then it is a crime
Lots of ideas here! I don't think we have to worry about a space disaster any time soon. Did you see the recent news story that NASA managed to successfully crash a probe into an asteroid? This is part of a plan to learn how to protect our planet from some of the things you mentioned.
At the moment, no one owns space because we haven't explored space enough to decide that yet. There are still miles upon miles of our galaxy we still need to explore. We shouldn't decide who owns space because we haven't explored all of our planet. My theory is that no one can really own space because we don't know I there is life on any of the planets in our galaxy. That is my answer to your question.
Good contribution!
You say that we cannot decide who owns space because we haven't explored it all yet. When we have explored everything, how do you think we could go about deciding who should own what in space?
My answers to the questions are:
1.I think that nobody owns the things in space as wasn't it created for anyone to enjoy? And what about people who have less benefits?
2.I think that the people who bring the materials back to Earth are the people who should own the planet, star, etc. because they have stepped onto the surface of the area.
3.The value should be shared with everyone on Earth, especially to charities or funds like that because it would be a lot fairer to do so.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this!
With respect to 2, can you explain why you think those people should own it? Why is stepping onto the surface first so important?
I think that stepping onto the surface of the place is important as it shows that the person has put in efforts to get to there. Plus, other people have not gone there, so there won't be anyone to oppose the person who got there.
space is common to all people living in earth which was determined by UN committee in 1950s had laid out an outer space treaty that is no country can lay claim to the moon asteroids or other celestial bodies , space is open to all for exploration. many space missions brought many things from space like asteroids samples ad so on which made us to research on it whether we can plant trees in space or not . when we share the value of space with each and every people in the world is not possible because space is common ta all people we can do exploration research and so on which makes us to rather than making us live in other planets etc.
1.Only God owns things that are in space,like stars,planets and asteroids
2.Yes definitely,astronauts who go to space,find them in space by vast searching
3.Yes,the value should be shared with scientists who should use it for benefit of mankind
I like your succinct response - very clear!
How can we share the value with scientists?
Space technology is advanced in developed countires. And if we have to share the value of the object from space with the scientists then it must share with the scientists belongs to even underdeveloped country who couldn't afford the space mission and take part in the search. There must be a common research centers having no nationality or barriers what so ever. And all the researcher get equal chance to explore the findings from outer space.
Of course, all humans are equal. We all live on this earth, and it is our duty for all us to preserve the planet, as is our duty for what is beyond the vision of our eyes. And as everyone has a right in all the resources on earth, as we all have the right in the things that are in space, and even galaxy.
So in my opinion, everything that exists in space, including stars, planets, and asteroids, is the right of all human beings, specially who help to find it, like Astronaut and NASA Space Station in which this crew make great effort and travel imaginary distances away from their countries, family and their children just to help in life development and discover space, or we can say discover a new planet for humans that we can live in.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
You make a good point when you say that space is the right of all human beings. Do you have any suggestions on what we can do to ensure that happens?
Yes, all humans are equal, however, we don't all own space. No one does. Space is not an object that you can hold and say, 'yes I own this'. You could have all the money in the world, but you simply wouldn't be able to buy space because it's obviously not for sale because no one can ever own it. space was not created for people to enjoy or whatever, it's just here, same as the earth. I believe that if one person has stepped on a specific planet and explored it, they should partly own it, not the entirety of space. in reality, space is just nothingness. I would like to ask what is outside of space and who owns that? No one. Think of how many different galaxies there are; with things more advanced or less advanced than us. We can't just all own space. no one owns it and no one will ever be able to
Hi I am here to answer Dr. Kenny's questions, but before I answer these questions, I would like to say that when we talk about space, the first thing that comes to mind is how to organize the planets and the greatness of the Creator in harnessing them. I will now solve these questions The first question is: He who subjected the planets to all of us, just as he did not subject them without benefit. There is certainly a benefit for those huge planets. secondly . I think that those planets were found by scientists or people who love adventure and are interested in things that we would not have known had it not been for these people. Third . Or should I say to those who care about these things, continue the research so that all people benefit, and thank you for your great efforts
Who owns things that are in space, like stars, planets and asteroids?
Is it the people that find them or is it the people that bring the materials back to Earth?
Should the value be shared with everyone on Earth?
To be honest nobody actually owns anything in space because these bodies are celestial. Celestial means an astronomical object that is naturally occurring physical entity, association or structure that exists in the observable universe.
people are able to bring some materials back to earth although these materials can find their way to the earth's atmosphere, small pieces of rock are nudged from their originally circular orbits moving through space reaching speeds of 25 kilometers per second hitting the earth's surface.
i think the value should be shared with everyone on earth because these discovered objects don't have anyone possessing them
1 In my opinion, no one owns the stars, asteroids, and planets, but rather they belong to their creator, so they are considered collective property and not private property. 2 I believe that people are the ones who found it because of the research and exploration that they are doing through modern equipment such as spaceships, satellites, and others.3 If anything falls from space, whoever finds it must hand it over to the government or any other competent authority.
What should the governments do when they have it, exhilerated_durian?
I think they can benefit from it for the earth by making new things for people through manufacturing and others, or they can make it in a museum, I mean heritage, and so on, but I think it is difficult for anything to fall from space.
I, the student, am happy to answer your questions, Dr. Kenny, and therefore I will try my own way first. Regarding the first question, which is who owns the things that exist in space, I will say that space belongs to everyone, and it is not allocated to anyone. Any of us thought of owning space because we did not complete our knowledge of planets and stars and we did not finish exploring our planet completely. From my point of view, no human being can and does not have the right to own space at the present time. As I mentioned earlier that we did not complete our knowledge and because we do not know which planets are suitable for living Regarding the third question, the value must be shared with everyone, especially with charities that provide assistance to needy families, and we salute our world from the bounties of God.Finally, thank you, Dr. Kenny
The UAE is the largest country in the region investing in space, with a value of more than 20 billion dirhams ($5.44 billion) over the past 15 years, with a growth in the volume of investments of about 10% annually.
Mohammed Nasser Al-Ahbabi, Director General of the Emirates Space Agency (a government agency), said that there is a trend in the Arab world towards the space sector and increasing the level of regional cooperation, and therefore it is necessary to search for new ways to develop forms of cooperation.
He stressed that the UAE is working on issuing legal frameworks and regulations that will regulate the space sector in the country, stressing their importance in organizing current and future space activities.
He pointed out that the Arab region enjoys a long heritage in the fields of space, stars and science, as the contributions of Arab scientists to the development of these confrontations ............... and God willing, we will continue in this 🤲
Everything God created is to help humanity, and there are no limits to that. The moon and other planets, even meteorites and others, all belong to man, and if a person finds them first, they belong to him (the fallen meteorites belong to whoever finds them first) if they are found on planet Earth, but if they are found outside that It belongs to the country that sent the vehiclesAnd the astronauts, where they conduct their research to find solutions to some of the problems that we are experiencing now, for example, the soil that is brought after each exploration is studied to find out if the soil of that planet is suitable for cultivation in the event of the possibility of building colonies on those planets. I do not prefer to share it with everyone, because the research that is being conducted on it can only be done by countries or large space companies, and no one will benefit from it then.
Here on Earth, we are used to the idea of land ownership. A piece of land belongs to someone whether that is an individual, a company, or a state, and the owner has rights over what is done with that land. Which I truly think is a stupid law, because in my opinion no individual person owns the planet we live in, we all own the planet together, how and why some people think that they own a land, and now they are buying a pice of the Earth with money just to build a house or company, like who actually take these money and what happens to it. And when we talk about the space we obviously don’t live their and we can’t live their. So we do not own a single inch of the space.
And in 1967 (the outer space treaty) that was put forward by the U.S , that says the space belongs to no one country.
This means that legally speaking, no country can claim to own the space.
Countries might plants their flags on the moon, but this is a symbolic gesture rather than a proof of ownership.
This case reminds me of Antarctica, which researches from other countries can visit and work on but can not claim ownership of.
From my religous prespective Allah the all mighty is the creator of everything in this whole entire universe.So therefore Allah owns space,stars,planets and asteroids.
I think the value should be shared with everyone on earth as the earth's resources are used to explore space and everyone should get a chance to be wealthy even if it's for 2 minutes or so.
All creatures including humans are for god who create everything in this world , but if we think about this question we would find out that the citizen that has the ability to search and find out the answer of “What is space made up from ?” and when they know the answer they could save this new world in the space as they save that on earth . Then in my opinion people who can save this piece of our huge world that surrounds us they have the right to own that place . Do you think that one day we could travel to another planet in the space as if we go to Paris ?
Possibly if all people just wanted physical possessions.
Other people need some things that they value even more like a purpose in Life and bringing Joy to others.
Of making a difference in this World by truly participating in Living.
Talking it socially I think that everything created in this world, no doubt that god is the creator, but obviously no one is the owner of the space all those moons, stars, asteroids and no one actually can be . There is no claim for sovereignty in space; no nation can “own” space, the Moon or any other body. Weapons of mass destruction are forbidden in orbit and beyond, and the Moon, the planets, and other celestial bodies can only be used for peaceful purposes. Obviously it's not the thing that those materials like stars, moon, sun the space can be own by anyone cause it is equally playing its role in this universe, like the sun giving the light heat to the world, not like only the owner is going to get the facilities , so it can make no sense that the space can be control by anyone as it has its own ways of playing a role . So I guess everyone needs to understance the importance of space as it allows us to prove or disprove scientific theories developed on Earth.
This question baffled me and I want to ask one of the experts. Does Russia invade Venus??? I read a lot about space, but this question aroused my curiosity: I am waiting for your responses
i think no one should own space and i think that no one should be able to buy anything from space because its not just ours to have its everyones.
Talking about owning space by people I do not think that anyone owns space. But according to researches the moon, and the celestial bodies can only be used for peaceful purposes not to be owned by anyone. People who found out about space or brought the materials found in space back to earth do not own space. So no matter which national flag is on the moon it cannot be owned by anyone. I believe that what ever valuable thing is found both on earth and in space, it should be at least kept in the museum for people to come and see.
Space is more of a "free" place. It is like a "free" man nobody owns him/her. Traveling to space and discovering all of these magnificent asteroids, stars and planets are a gift that space grants human beings. It is not only enjoying adventures or amusing the eyes, space is also full of expensive resources that might take humanity to a new level of prosperity, development and peace.
I believe Nasa should let people, specially those who are qualified and those who know what is best for the environment, apply for resources requests. Nasa should specify specific criteria to those who want to sponsor thier "usefull projects for humanity and enviroment".
I suggest criteria include:
1- Your project must not harm the environment including animals, forests and nautical creatures.
2- Your project should not be related to any kind of violence or wars
3- Your project should grant benefits to all humans in all over the world, not only the people of your country.
4- Your project should help those in need including sick and poor people. You may invent a cure for a disease or give people opportunities to make a living.
Of course the value of those projects and inventions should be shared with all humans who deserve it away from discrimination and racism.
well in my opinion I feel that we the humans own space because it was made by our God for us to us and explore. God created space for our benefit. but in the real sense it is not anyone's although we live in it.it was created for everyone.
The things that are in space aren't owned by anyone but when someone puts in their time, money and energy to find these items and even bring them to earth they gain ownership of those materials just like if am digging and accidentally I land on diamond 💎 it will be my luck y day because I am the one who found it and I will be the owner so the value got form the items one gets from space shouldn't be shared with everyone because they didn't contribute anything for you to go and get them from space but it's the person's choice to share them it is not a must that you have to share them with everyone.
I think that no one owns space, because space is such a big secret that no one could ever solve, and year by year space scientists are discovering new plants, new informations about how space is formed and that's what make it hard to be solved , although many people have already explored a part of space but no one should have the right to say that he / she owns the space because as I said above space is a big secret that no one could ever solve ! Because they need a million of years and a thousand of volunteers to explore every detail in space and they will not be able to get enough details about greatness of space because our universe is from 14 billion years.
And in my opinion no one till now with the development of science and technology convince me that space is owned by someone and there's no logical explanation for all the things in our space
I think that no one owns space, as space is both too big for someone to own and nobody can really own or keep track of space, as it constantly changes . Space could also only have a limited amount of owners because you have to actually be in space to "own" it. I think that people shouldn't try to fight or have wars or who owns, controls, or denies or allows access into space. Space was made for everyone to enjoy when they get the chance to go there and it should never have an owner.
No one owns the things in space, because it really wouldn't make any sense if someone just owned an asteroid or a planet. No one can't really send things to Earth, so it's the people who found them. I don't think the value should be shared with everyone if it's not safe. Professionals should look into it to see if it's safe, and if it is, then it can be shared to everyone.
No one owns space, people can go to space but it doesn't mean they own it.
i think everyone in the univeres owns space as not one person found it multiple people did. Like aleins and other creatures in space may have found it and we didnt know. space is magical and we have not experienced it and there is lots of things we don't know and other creatures do . Is there more things in space we don't know about?
if space was owned the world would have been different. technically space has its own mind of its own. but if space was not owned everyone would not be confused at all. so how can space be owned?
Hello, Dr. Kenny, I would like to fulfill your request and answer your questions. I believe that space does not belong to anyone, but I may be biased in saying that space belongs to space companies, scientists and astronauts. We have always watched the galaxies' wars for control of space. I think this was suggesting to us that if you find a planet, it will be yours, since you are the first to enter it. Maybe I think it's people who find it where they find it in space and then we know it.
I think that no one owns space because no one created it it was just the universe unless you believe in god then you might think it was god but personally I think no one created the universe and that what caused it was just evaluation.
I think NASA owns space because they have a big satellite in space
highspirited tuba, while NASA certainly has a number of satellites in space, they are not the only space agency in the world. Even the ISS was not built by NASA alone: it was a joint endeavour of 15 different nations. Most countries have their own space agencies, which have sent satellites to space too. So is it really fair if just one organization is allowed to lay claim on the vast canvas that is outer space, on which we are nought but a miniscule speck of paint?
I think we have all heard of the old fable: 2 cats fight over a piece of bread, one claiming that it is theirs because they saw it first, while the other says that it is theirs because they got there first. So who does it really belong two? This is just my opinion, but I think that the latter has the better claim. In the context of celestial bodies, isn't it only fair that the first organization to reach such a body have control over it? While planets are certainly exempt to this logic, I believe that asteroids especially should be owned by organisations who first reached them. This would allow them to mine these, giving us access to valuable minerals as well as helping our economy.
According to the treaty on principles governing the activities of states in the exploration and use of outer space including moon and other celestial bodies states that space is common to all the countries in the world no one can own the space or moon which was signed by 106 countries.
I think that it i God that created everythink because " God created the heaven and the earth and everything in it ", so it is still not in confirm that it is God that created but we are not sure that it is him that created space and space is too wide for us to put claim that it issome one that own it because space is too vas and wide .
1_ In my opinion, we can't say "who owns space" maybe we should say "who doesn't own space"
Dear: I was very tired of this question.
Space belongs to all mankind, and we cannot single this out from that, and this is proven by not acting in anything that harms space, such as: launching missiles that may affect space and damage the outside, because we will all stand and stand in front of this destroyer!
2_ I believe that these things were found in a deep and difficult way, and they would not have been found if there were not those dedicated to that, and I believe that those scattered things that were found are a good sign for a greater discovery and more possessions.
3_ Yes, of course! Do you like that I find what you have and dispose of it on my own? Space is perhaps a future for all humanity, and the existing person will not be able to adapt to it alone.
Well, I will fulfill your request, Dr. Kenny, and I will answer your questions in my own way.
1 Who owns things that are in space, like stars, planets and asteroids?
It belongs to all of us, and God created it for us to benefit from .
2 Is it the people who find them, or is it the people who bring the materials back to Earth?
I think that these things are found by certain people who are assigned to do so and who have to examine and see them.
3Should the value be shared with everyone on Earth?
I believe that value should be shared by those who care about these things .
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There cannot really be a correct answer to this question. I mean who can really own space when not even 1 percent of it has been discovered by humans and it keeps expanding. Now some people just might say god created space or something like that but I am not gonna stand by nor criticize their opinion. What if you are an atheist? Then you can't say god created space. Well to be fair, everything in the universe just did not appear all of a sudden and there is surely a higher power who indeed is the 3-omni being and created everything but we can't say it was he who created it and owns it as that is still not a logical answer. Space is no ones to own nor to claim to be their as none can explore the true boundaries of space. It belongs to every person which be a common man or a billionaire and it is a open sovereign