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While a new space race is gaining momentum, many technical executives have sold Mars as the out-of-earth fate of humankind. But they can look too far. Our most immediate chance for life beyond the Earth is much closer, a path likely to be flamed by far less well-known companies.
Building Colonies on the Moon "Will Provide a Plan for Mars". The men and women who will found these lunar colonies are likely to be employed by small private mining companies, not by technology tycoons. Many of these companies are connected to the tiny nation of the EU in Luxembourg.
Surprisingly, NASA believes that such moon colonies could be established in the next four years.
Takeshi Hakamada is one of those who are trying to boldly return where humanity has set foot. This time, however, there is a much more commercial dream: scouring the moon for profitable mineral and gas resources, as well as vital lunar water.
Hakamada is the CEO of ispace, a privately owned space exploration company based in Tokyo, which is also present in Luxembourg. He plans to finish a lunar orbit in 2020, then to attempt a lunar landing in 2021.
"Our first two missions will serve as a demonstration of our technology. From there, we will start establishing a high-frequency transport service to bring customer payloads to the moon, "he says. "If we find water resources on the moon, we can develop a new resource industry in the space." The discovery of a frozen water basin would be a monumental moment for our species, because it would allow humans to stay longer
Hakamada is far from being alone in his cosmic ambitions. There are now 10 space mining companies (including ispace) legally domiciled in Luxembourg since the launch of the country's space resources law in February 2016. This was fueled by a $ 223 million ($ 200 million) fund. 39; euros). For these space companies, the Moon is one of the two main targets considered; Commercial companies are also looking for asteroids close to Earth to extract metal resources (as is covered in this recent story on BBC Future). Between the Moon and about 16,000 near-Earth asteroids, the available resources could be rich enough to produce the world's first trillionaire, say some experts – including famed astrophysicist Neil deGrbade Tyson –
. launched its 2016 law. This made it the second country in the world after the United States to provide a comprehensive legal framework for exploiting resources beyond our planet. "Since February 2016, we have interacted with nearly 200 companies that have contacted us," says Paul Zenners, representative of the Luxembourg Ministry of the Economy, which leads the government initiative SpaceResources.lu
. the effect of attracting the largest American companies in the field
The Luxembourg space framework has important differences compared to that of the United States. The latter's law requires companies to have more than 50% of US-backed equity, while Luxembourg sees no such limitation. The rich Grand Duchy, ranked as the richest country in the world by GDP per capita according to the IMF, has also been accused by some of being a tax haven. It offers a range of incentives and tax benefits, including extremely low rates for capital repatriation.
The entry of Luxembourg into the space race in 2016 has attracted the largest American companies on the ground, including Deep Space Industries and Planetary Resources, an American firm that counts Sir Richard Branson and Google co-founder Larry Page as funders. Planetary Resources, one of the oldest players in the private space industry, has sold a $ 28 million (£ 21.2 million) stake to the Grand Duchy. The exact amount of equity has never been disclosed, but the head of the company recognizes that Luxembourg is one of the biggest investors.
Luxembourg's law on space resources has opened an entry point for investment. Despite the investment, the mining industry is an industry that simultaneously highlights ambiguous legal pitfalls.
"It is unclear whether international space law allows a country to grant property rights over natural resources extracted in space," concluded a study by Allen and Overy , a Luxembourg law firm After the United States approved the first global mining law in 2015, Russia was one of the countries to raise objections. [19659002Tounderstandtheambiguityofspacewemustreturntothe1967OuterSpaceTreatyawaragreementprohibitingthenationalownershipofcelestialbodies39spaceistreatedasacommongroundsimilartotheAntarcticThemilitarydevelopmentibadtremelylimitedinspacebytheOSTwhichhasbeensignedby105countriesoutoftheSpaceForcerecentlybrandishedbyPresidentTrumpWashingtonibadpectedtoleavetheOSTisolan
But the OST neglects substantially any reference to the ownership of resources, an omission that the United States and Luxembourg have chosen. to define. They are unlikely to be the only ones; the UAE recently signed an agreement to learn Luxembourg's finesse.
Luxembourg law does not have the purpose, purpose or effect of preparing the national appropriation of celestial bodies – Paul Zenners
"The Luxembourg law on the exploration and the l & # 39; use of space resources addresses this issue [omission] and clarifies at the national level, as a first step to enable space resource activities, "says Zenners." Luxembourg's law is not intended, for purpose or purpose effect of paving the way for national ownership of celestial bodies. Only the ownership of space resources is treated in the legal framework, which also sets the rules for authorization and supervision of missions. "
The small size of Luxembourg can help it to take the lead in this new rush to the riches of space." With the United States, Luxembourg has turned out to be a Forward-thinking country, and their success will allow private companies to carry out deep space missions, "said Bill Miller, CEO of US-based Deep Space Industries.European Headquarters
Debate is not going to may not last long: space mining companies have the habit of touting overly ambitious launch schedules, but if profits start to turn in a day in the near future, it is probably safe to think that Luxembourg will be somewhere in the picture.
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