International liability for damage caused by space objects

Abstract

In recent years new successes have been achieved in studying outer space. The genius and the labour of mankind have sent hundreds of artificial earth satellites into orbit and have launched space-ships to the planets of the solar system. By October 1967, 3,000 objects had been placed in space; almost 1,300 of these are still in orbit. There had been 803 payloads. Of the launchings, 529 were by the U.S., 269 by the U.S.S.R., 4 by France, 1 by Italy. Payloads had been designed by Canada, the U.K., Australia, European Space Research Organisation (ESRO) and others as well. By the end of 1967, Australia had also launched a satellite. See S. Houston Lay and Howard J. Taubenfeld, the Law Relating to Activities of Man in Space, 1970, p. xii, note 4. This has made possible a start on the utilization of space technology for serving terrestrial needs. Great success in the development of space programmes has been achieved by scientists and specialists in the United States, the Soviet Union, France, Japan and a number of other countries. Since 1957, after the first artificial satellite was successfully launched into orbit by the U.S.S.R., efforts to explore celestial bodies, especially the Moon, have been accelerated. Apart from the successful attempts by the U.S.S.R. at soft landing on Venus in 1967, a series of successfully completed missions to the Moon of the Apollo 11 to 15 during 1969 to 1971 by the United States - a mission which included manned landings on the Moon - adds further importance to this magic exploration of the celestial bodies. On 11 February 1970, Japan launched the first Japanese satellite, Ohsumi, with a Japanese launcher, Lambda 4 J, from Kagoshima Space Centre. See U.N. Doc. A/AC. 105/PV.85 p. 5 with modern science and technology, making has started on a new stage in the conquest of space; it has begun to penetrate other celestial bodies. The expeditions of the United States astronauts and the experiments done by the Soviet Union are opening new prospects before making for the conquest of the moon, the natural satellite of the Earth. In reviewing the activities of 1970, the primary attention was focussed on two events: the eighteen-day endurance flight of "Soyuz 9" and the safe return of the crew of "Apollo 13". See the statement made by the Chairman of the Legal Sub-Committee on 1 September 1971. Ibid., p. 4.