STEVEN FREELAND: “WE ARE AT A CROSSROADS WHEN IT COMES TO SPACE”

Steven Freeland speaks to All About Space about the importance of space law, the future of space travel and who is liable when something goes wrong

- Daisy Dobrijevic

BIO

Steven Freeland Freeland is emeritus professor at Western Sydney University. He is a member of the Australian Space Agency Advisory Board. He has represented the Australian Government at United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) meetings, and in June 2021 was appointed by COPUOS as vice-chair of a five–year working group addressing issues related to the exploration, exploitation and utilisation of space resources.

What is space law?

Space is incredibly important for us. We use it many times a day without even thinking. It’s not just your phone, it’s so many things, as diverse as financial transactions to aircraft navigation to agriculture to disaster management. There’s also a highly commercial, global $400 billion [£290 billion] space industry that is growing exponentially. Space is also a critical part of infrastructure for national security and military purposes and, of course, is about science, culture, religion and many aspects of civil society.

Space is ubiquitous, but also incredibly multifaceted, highly strategic and highly (geo)political. It’s crucial, therefore, that we have developed a fundamental body of international law to regulate and compel responsible behaviour in outer space, which unlike airspace is an area beyond national jurisdiction.

The legal characterisation of airspace was already categorised by the 1919 Paris Convention as the exclusive jurisdiction of the underlying country. Thus, UK law applies to UK airspace. In general terms, I cannot enter another airspace without permission.