Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into space

I saw the below on Huffington Post this morning and I think it's an interesting question. As more and more billionaires venture into space travel - what's stopping them from vast amounts of real estate on the Moon?

Could someone like Richard Branson essentially claim squatters rights on the Moon?

The 1967 treaty about this subject leaves the door wide open for a large corporation to claim property rights on the Moon:

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

I've wondered about this as well. I think what it comes down to is whoever can take and hold on to the territory, regardless of what the UN says. It's sort of like "international law". It's written on paper, but if you can't enforce it then who cares?

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

^^^ In other words the first person or world government that can put the lasers on the moon to fire back?

We need a old style Bond villain e.g. Spectre or Drax who's got a shit pot full of money to really ramp up the moon's colonization sooner rather than later.

I'm guessing someone like Richard Branson or Bill Gates is just too much of a nice guy to fire back and/or weaponize the Moon.

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

What do we need to colonize the Moon for?

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

For starters, tourism for the rich. If wealthy people are willing to pay a lot of money to go into low earth orbit they'd pay a hell of a lot more to stay at the first Four Seasons on Luna I'd imagine.

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

For a penal colony! DUH!

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

"Women are scarce; aren't enough to go around – that makes them most valuable thing in Luna, more precious than ice or air, as men without women don't care whether they stay alive or not."

Unrelated to above:
"Some would say that the Earth is our moon."
"We're the moon."
"But that would belittle the name of our moon, which is: The Moon."
"Point is: we're at the center, not you."

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

They would need to stay there to claim it. That's the trick.
The only possible way that could currently be done is with armed drones patrolling the surface.

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

Yeah. If some billionaire wants to start building a house on the moon, let him have it. He deserves the moon if he's willing to go that far.

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

Don't let it be an old, grumpy American gun nut, though. They tend to shoot teenage trespassers with their rifles!

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

The only trespasser they have on the Moon would be the mighty moon worm.

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

BTW, how exactly would projectile weapons work in the low gravity environment on the moon and in a vacuum? Probably not nearly as well.

Never mind found the answer:

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

Guns work just fine in space. In fact, bullets would travel farther because there's no air resistance.

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

[rant]

It bothers me when people post quotes, but don't provide links to where the text came from.

[/rant]

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

A couple of things are certain, as I read this thought-provoking thread:

Drax could work...plus, his Babes were H-O-T
Billionaires, and, most likely, Branson, will have something to do with the Moon
In the case of the Moon, possession is 9/10ths...until a government entity takes it away

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

Surely we'll have to worry about some billionaire having a Moonopoly.

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

Sorry, Cornell University.

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

sojourner appear with the tedious inevitability of an unloved season.
"Mr.sojourner, you persist in defying my efforts to provide an amusing death for you."

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

"Get off my Crater!!!"

 

Re: Who owns the Moon? Legal question as billionaires launch into spa

For the babes. Why else?