SPLAWG

Today we discuss Space Crime #9, which examines the actions of one Dr. Mann in the film Interstellar — by actions, I mean pretty much everything he does in the movie. Anyone who’s seen it knows that Mann messed up (pun intended). So, logically the next question is just what would happen if Mann, or rather his estate (*spoiler alert* he dies), were taken to court. (Read the full list of the galaxy’s greatest space crimes here .) To begin: He falsified the data about his “habitable” planet He tried to kill his fellow space travelers and actually succeeded with one of them And he damaged their ship the Endurance in his suicidal attempt to manually dock their other ship To make sure that he gets his day in court we need to figure out (1) where a case could be brought and (2) what the claims would be. Proper Forum The first question we have got to address is where this case can be brought. Article VIII of the United Nations Outer Space Treaty states, a ...

Mars: The next frontier Elon Musk has been all over space news in recent years with his now famous goal to take humans to our red sister planet . Despite what you may think, he’s not the only one; MarsOne (debatably), NASA , and Mars Base Camp , all have plans to put humans on Mars in the next few decades. Though there are some very convincing skeptics ( Neil Degrasse Tyson ); many people, myself included, are excited to see if Space X can pull it off and to see the subsequent flux in space law . ( See here for more on Musk). There is just one problem.  Haven’t we already gone to Mars?  Didn’t Matt Damon already make it there?  Well, not exactly.  But he did play a convincing Martian.  Mark Watney — the lovable sarcastic astronaut, the man who stakes a personal claim to many firsts in space for humans, even being the first space pirate.   (Go here for the complete list of top 10 space crimes.) What it takes to be a space pirate (a.k.a Spirate...

If you’re like me (and like most people), after you watch a movie you’re primary reaction is: sure the action was alright, but where’s the legal analysis? That’s why we’ve used our vague and complex rubric to compile this list of the top 10 space crimes ever committed. Besides, considering the dearth of “real” human activity in space, these “fake” film scenes provide a stellar platform for the much-desired application of space law. #1 Inhabitants of Alderaan, deceased v. Galactic Empire, Grand Moff Tarkin Grand Moff Tarkin told the Death Star to blow up the planet of Alderaan, and that’s exactly what it did. The first Death Star’s superlaser created a superluminal boost , pushing Alderaan’s mass into hyperspace and destroying it instantly along with its 2 billion inhabitants. That is what we call planetary genocide, and the Empire must pay. via GIPHY #2 Crew of Discovery I v.  Heuristically Programmed Algorithmic Computer 9000 In 2001: A Space Odyssey , Heuristically ...