When Russia launched the world's first satellite in 1957, it revealed a glaring hole in legal policy — how should we regulate outer space? Should Russia get in trouble for violating international law by flying a satellite over US airspace without permission?
It was clear we'd need a new set of rules to govern airspace as humanity started climbing higher into the sky and eventually into outer space.
That, and the Cold War idea that the United States or Russia would try to colonize space and create a nuclear weapons base there helped inspire the United Nations Outer Space Treaty of 1967.
The treaty was the founding body of space law and it's inspired several other international conventions and agreements.
Here are some of the major laws that currently govern space, and what policies we'll need in the future:
One of the most important bodies of space law is the United Nations "Outer Space Treaty." It lays out several rules that dictate how countries must behave in space.
Source: The United Nations Outer Space Treaty.
1. Space is common ground and everyone is allowed to explore it.
"Outer space shall be free for exploration and use by all States," the Outer Space Treaty reads.
2. But anyone exploring space has to do it peacefully.
"The Moon and other celestial bodies shall be used exclusively for peaceful purposes," the treaty reads.
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