Geoff Parson begins a new year by covering aspects of the emerging UK space industry and the framework of laws impacting on the technologies, professional matters and businesses involved
When the United Nations’ five outer space treaties were written between 1967 and 1984, the lawmakers did not have in mind that you, as future surveyors, might be part of a private sector venture into outer space for commercial purposes.
For instance, in 2045 you may be leading a team managing the first commercial and residential sales and lettings on the Moon, or 10 years later at Elon Musk’s proposed city on Mars. With this in mind, this article aims to give you an overview of the setting for and continuing growth of the ground-based side of the UK space industry.
UK space law
The UK has two space statutes and secondary legislation which give a detailed framework for work in the space industry. Some aspects of the laws relate directly to estates work, although most topics are somehow linked to landed matters. A summary of the law including the two UK statutes is:
- The UN’s five outer space treaties
These treaties, perhaps dated and in need of refreshing, set out the principles and practices by which spacefaring nations are expected to carry on space-related activities. - The Outer Space Act 1986
A comprehensive statute to govern UK outer space activities in accordance with the UN’s five treaties. - The Space Industry Act 2018
This sets out a detailed framework for how the UK’s spaceports will be licensed and run by their operators. - The Artemis Accords
A Nasa initiative in the US which has and will lead numerous international, bilateral, space-related agreements with other countries’ space agencies. - The US-UK Technology Safeguards Agreement 2020
A bilateral agreement by an exchange of letters, which enables US companies to use UK spaceports and protect US know‑how.
The Artemis Accords are a significant initiative from the US. Their purpose was to generate inter-agency agreements between countries, which will adopt the principles enshrined in them. The essential features of the Artemis Accords are: i) to follow the principles of the UN’s five outer space treaties; and ii) to open outer space to private enterprise on an ethical basis.
The UK space industry
Although the UK space industry has been around for years, in November 2020 the government announced development funding for seven areas in England, and some more in the devolved government areas, to create space hubs. The UK space industry is projected to rapidly increase employment from the present 42,000, and current annual turnover stands at about £15bn.
Spaceports Scotland is fast developing several spaceports, mainly for placing satellites in orbit, some with associated space hub elements. Spaceports in Scotland are members of the Spaceports Alliance, which was formed in 2020. Cornwall is another location. The UK’s six spaceport assets are set out in the table below. (Please note that the space industry’s terminology is somewhat unsettled in the literature. For instance, “spaceport” may include a “space hub” or be called a “space centre”.)
Three Ministry of Defence ranges contracted to QinetiQ are suitable for space-related tests and trials. They are: Funtington RF Range, Hebrides Trials Range and Pendine Range. The ranges are available to government, the military and private sector businesses for space-related work on products and services.
Professional services
Our landed professions should see increased demand for premises at spaceports and space hubs, together with numerous niche concerns about specialist topics covering compulsory land rights, insurances, lettings, sales and “spacefalls” – asteroids, meteors, meteorites and space debris falling to Earth.
Professional services for outer space have been rapidly developing. These include:
1. Astrobiology
Experiments in growing plants in space are ongoing at the International Space Station. Once research and other stations are placed on the Moon, the replication of urban hydroponic farming may well be needed – more so for long-term settlements.
2. Law
UN outer space law needs further development. This will enhance the quality of existing treaties. Some law practices have advisory services for outer space matters, such as for contracts for orbital satellite services, and insurance matters.
3. Insurance
Spacefalls and accidents will engender concerns about liabilities and insurance. Several specialist companies offer outer space insurances services, including cover for tourist trips, satellite launches and third-party losses and damage. Space travel insurance may be linked to household and business policies much more frequently and may in the future need to be checked by professional estate managers.
4. Project managers
Any space station development will require a project management capability. If this is going to be of interest as a graduate, look to 2025 and onwards, when the first “settlements” are planned to be constructed on the harsh lunar landscape.
5. Valuation
Extra-terrestrial “real estate” does not exist as such, as yet, except as paper certificate “sales” of parcels of land on the Moon or Mars. However, we will soon need to start thinking about the likely practical education and training needs of space realty valuers and estates surveyors. Undergraduates will eventually need new modules on the subject, and within 20 years there will almost certainly be full-blown university courses in the subject.
6. Cyber domain
Today’s increased need for cyber security, and the threat of cyber warfare and cyber terrorism, were barely conceived of until about 2000. It may be that the surveying profession needs to develop new specialisms in these matters as regards space-related property and facilities.
7. Defence
Many countries have military space units. Although the UN treaties ban nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction in space, the principal concerns are cyber security, physical defence of orbital satellites and cyber warfare.
Spaceport facilities management
If you get into facilities management at one of the UK’s spaceports or space hubs, you will need (for starters) to be versed in: a) the terminology and management of cyber security; b) space insurance; c) land rights for spaceports and ranges; and d) earth observation services and products. Let us examine some of these issues:
- Land rights: the Space Industry Act 2018 provides for land rights for cables, structures and so on, to be acquired by the spaceport body. These rights will usually be acquired by agreement, but a compulsory procedure exists, avoiding ransom demands. Of course, rights of objection, representation and compensation are available to property owners.
- Safety zone: prior to launch, a safety zone around a spaceport will be temporarily closed. There are provisions for the payment of compensation in the event of loss or damage. As to the zonal dimensions, at least two overseas governments apply something like a 4km radius around the launch site.
- Insurances: property owners near spaceports may be worried about loss or damage owing to safety problems. Every launch management should satisfy themselves that the owner has a licence for the launch of each satellite-bearing flight and any other space vehicle. In getting the licence, the applicant will have assured the government that insurance cover will be in place.
The final frontier
If, like me, you might just prefer to see the stars, you could volunteer to look for fiery spacefalls dropping through the frictional atmosphere to Earth’s surface. You may not know, but the UK is “covered” by a network of firefall watch stations with cameras recording descents. The idea is to then triangulate the falls to recover the remains, if any.
Geoff Parson is a retired lecturer and author.
Paul Collins is a senior lecturer at Nottingham Trent University and Mainly for Students editor. He welcomes suggestions for the column and can be contacted at paul.collins@ntu.ac.uk
