Space is the next environment that has to be protected against the impact of human development, a panel of top experts has warned at the UK Government’s GREAT Festival of Innovation in Hong Kong.
The group of academics said that international investment and regulation needs to happen urgently or space risks being as damaged as our oceans are by human development. Development on the Moon and other planets is a ‘virtual certainty’ as new resources are sought from outside the Earth. And, if not properly regulated, development will impact vital functions, such as enabling worldwide communications and vital observation of Earth.