Abstract
The parable of the ‘Tragedy of the Commons' can be applied to the international politics of outer space. The specific legal content of human activity on the Moon and in the geostationary orbit precludes a private appropriation, while the established röle of private corporations in the economy of outer space makes the establishment of collective ownership unlikely. The tension between treaty law and customary law, and between rival legal interpretations of space activity, mirrors an underlying conflict between space powers and non-space powers. For the time being at least, the space powers have an incentive to maintain the legal régime most susceptible to tragedy, since this is the one that they can dominate most easily.
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