National Space Legislation

Abstract

Space activities have traditionally been limited to governmental entities. In the early decades of the Space Age only states had the technical and financial capabilities to carry out the exploration and use of outer space. Private actors were long excluded from it. On one side, due to strategic and political reasons, governments were hesitant to allow anyone other than their own military or governmental space agencies to be involved in space-related affairs. On the other side, the enormous financial commitments required to undertake any kind of operation in space deterred potential private investors from entering the space sector. Furthermore, the legal framework to regulate private activities in space was largely inadequate.