Authority Comes Through Existing Space Launch Licenses, FAA Says In Letter

Commercial companies that obtain a license to launch a spacecraft to the Moon can legally stake a commercial claim on Earth's satellite, according to the U.S. government.

That is the interpretation of a letter from the FAA last December to Bigelow Aerospace. Reuters reports that in the letter, the agency will “leverage the FAA’s existing launch licensing authority to encourage private sector investments in space systems by ensuring that commercial activities can be conducted on a non-interference basis.”

Legal analysts told Reuters that the language means that Bigelow could set up an inflatable habitat it has under development on the Moon, and could reasonably expect to have exclusive rights to not only the area which is occupied but also related areas that might be mined or otherwise used and explored.

There was a caveat, as you might expect. The letter goes on to say that “the national regulatory framework, in its present form, is ill-equipped to enable the U.S. government to fulfill its obligations” under a United Nations treaty signed in 1967 that, among other things, governs activities on the Moon.

The FAA said it has not given Bigelow a license to land on the Moon. George Nield, associate administrator for the FAA’s Office of Commercial Transportation and the author of the letter, said it is a "payload review that would potentially be part of a future launch license request. But it served a purpose of documenting a serious proposal for a U.S. company to engage in this activity that has high-level policy implications.”

(Bigelow Moon habitat image from YouTube video)

FMI: www.faa.gov