As I write this, NASA’s Psyche spacecraft is making its long journey to an asteroid named 16 Psyche. When it arrives, it may confirm the presence of minerals which, when multiplied by the current market rate, hold an astonishing theoretical value of around $100 quintillion. This, of course, ignores the basic economic principle of supply and demand, but highlights the immense mineral wealth that exists within our cosmic backyard.
In reality, it is unlikely that terrestrially abundant materials will be mined and brought back to Earth. Instead, we may see businesses aiming to source and use materials in space that are otherwise rare or too expensive to extract and transport from the Earth’s crust.
Space mining may also be used to prolong missions. As humans voyage further into outer space, it becomes increasingly important to be able to generate usable products with local materials. This practice is called in-situ resource utilization.
Making commercial space mining a viable reality will rely on a whole series of technological advances and an understanding of the relevant legal framework. As an intellectual property professional, I am interested in both these aspects. Patents are national intellectual property rights, but the matter of applying these national laws and rights to space is a still-developing area.
From a national perspective, the United States, Japan, and perhaps more surprisingly, Luxembourg and the United Arab Emirates, have enacted national laws permitting ownership of extracted space resources. Although, as far as I am aware, only the U.S. has enacted a specific provision linking patents, jurisdiction and territory for space technology. With the uncapped potential for growth that outer space provides, other countries will likely introduce similar legislation to the U.S. in order to encourage development while the sector is still nascent.
The Outer Space Treaty (1967)
The bedrock of space law remains the Outer Space Treaty (OST),…
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