Space Resources

By Moriba Jah ASTRIAGraph, the world’s first crowd-sourced, space traffic monitoring and assessment system, can trace its roots back to a landfill in Maui. It was there, while working for the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, that I began to see the connection between the way we were treating our …

By John B. Sheldon The Power of Metaphor Since the launch of the first satellite, Sputnik I, on 4 October 1957 our presence in space has been described, defined, and politically and technologically driven by metaphors. The U.S.-Soviet space programmes in the Cold War weren’t just in competition, they were …

By Raphael Roettgen 50 years after humans first landed on the Moon, the space sector seems to be at an inflection point. Here is why: those land and sea landings of SpaceX’s Falcon-9 boosters (first stage rockets) surely never get old to watch, but, importantly, they also mean that a …

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the State of New South Wales, Australia, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on future space activities. This agreement sets up a framework for cooperation on space-related activities in areas including space science and space policy and law. Particular emphasis is given to …

The architect and political force behind Luxembourg’s burgeoning space scene, Deputy Prime Minister Étienne Schneider, has announced his intention to step down from his government position effective 4 February 2020, according to reports in the Luxembourg press. Schneider has exerted an outsized influence in establishing Luxembourg not only as a …

The International Institute of Space Law (IISL) is the global association for space law with individual and institutional members from almost 50 countries. The IISL’s key mission is the promotion of further development of space law and expansion of the rule of law in the exploration and use of outer …

The mission of the Prague Security Studies Institute is to help safeguard and strengthen the individual freedoms and democratic institutions of the countries in Central and Eastern Europe and beyond. PSSI is dedicated to the education and training of new generations of security-minded students and young professionals, including through its …

In a world where change is the only constant, leadership is more important than ever. European ministers have strongly endorsed ESA to take this lead, increase its organisational agility, effectiveness and efficiency, and reinforce its relationship with the European Union. “We have looked at the future of our activities solely …

The Hague International Space Resources Governance Working Group is pleased to announce the adoption of the Building Blocks for the Development of an International Framework on Space Resource Activities. On 12 November 2019, the members of the Hague International Space Resources Governance Working Group adopted the Building Blocks for the …

ESA’s Council at Ministerial Level, Space19+, has concluded in Seville, Spain, with the endorsement of the most ambitious plan to date for the future of ESA and the whole European space sector. The meeting brought together ministers with responsibility for space activities in Europe, along with Canada and observers from …