Liability Convention
Encyclopedia
The Convention on International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects, also known as the Space Liability Convention, is a treaty
that expands on the liability
rules created in the Outer Space Treaty
of 1967. Because relatively few accidents have occurred resulting from space objects, the treaty has never yet been invoked. However, in 1978, the crash of the nuclear-powered Soviet satellite
Cosmos 954
in Canadian territory nearly led to a claim under the Convention. Skylab
crashed in Western Australia the following year, and while there were no deaths, injuries, or significant damage, the shire of Esperance
did fine the Government of the United States $400 for littering as a result of Skylab's crashing to earth over Australia. NASA
never paid the debt, The fine was paid in April 2009, when radio show host Scott Barley of Highway Radio raised the funds from his morning show listeners and paid the fine on behalf of NASA.
intergovernmental organizations (the European Space Agency
, the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites
, and the European Telecommunications Satellite Organization) have declared their acceptance of the rights and obligations provided for in the Agreement.
Treaty
A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
that expands on the liability
Legal liability
Legal liability is the legal bound obligation to pay debts.* In law a person is said to be legally liable when they are financially and legally responsible for something. Legal liability concerns both civil law and criminal law. See Strict liability. Under English law, with the passing of the Theft...
rules created in the Outer Space Treaty
Outer Space Treaty
The Outer Space Treaty, formally the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, is a treaty that forms the basis of international space law...
of 1967. Because relatively few accidents have occurred resulting from space objects, the treaty has never yet been invoked. However, in 1978, the crash of the nuclear-powered Soviet satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
Cosmos 954
Cosmos 954
Kosmos 954 was a Soviet Radar Ocean Reconnaissance Satellite with an onboard nuclear reactor. The satellite was launched on September 18, 1977 and was designed to track nuclear submarines...
in Canadian territory nearly led to a claim under the Convention. Skylab
Skylab
Skylab was a space station launched and operated by NASA, the space agency of the United States. Skylab orbited the Earth from 1973 to 1979, and included a workshop, a solar observatory, and other systems. It was launched unmanned by a modified Saturn V rocket, with a mass of...
crashed in Western Australia the following year, and while there were no deaths, injuries, or significant damage, the shire of Esperance
Esperance, Western Australia
Esperance is a large town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, located on the Southern Ocean coastline approximately east-southeast of the state capital, Perth. The shire of Esperance is home to 9,536 people as of the 2006 census, its major industries are tourism, agriculture,...
did fine the Government of the United States $400 for littering as a result of Skylab's crashing to earth over Australia. NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
never paid the debt, The fine was paid in April 2009, when radio show host Scott Barley of Highway Radio raised the funds from his morning show listeners and paid the fine on behalf of NASA.
Status
The Liability Convention was concluded and opened for signature in 1972. It entered into force in September 1972. As of 1 January 2007, 82 States have ratified the Liability Convention, 25 have signed and three internationalInternational
----International mostly means something that involves more than one country. The term international as a word means involvement of, interaction between or encompassing more than one nation, or generally beyond national boundaries...
intergovernmental organizations (the European Space Agency
European Space Agency
The European Space Agency , established in 1975, is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 18 member states...
, the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites
European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites
EUMETSAT is an intergovernmental organisation created through an international convention agreed by a current total of 26 European Member States: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Romania, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, the...
, and the European Telecommunications Satellite Organization) have declared their acceptance of the rights and obligations provided for in the Agreement.
Key provisions
States (countries) bear international responsibility for all space objects that are launched within their territory. This means that regardless of who launches the space object, if it was launched from State A’s territory, or from State A’s facility, or if State A caused the launch to happen, then State A is fully liable for damages that result from that space object.Joint launches
If two states work together to launch a space object, then both of those states are jointly and severally liable for the damage that object causes. This means that the injured party can sue either of the two states for the full amount of damage.Claims between states only
Claims under the Liability Convention must be brought by the state against a state. The Convention was created to supplement existing and future national laws providing compensation to parties injured by space activities. Whereas under most national legal systems an individual or a corporation may bring a lawsuit against another individual or another corporation, under the Liability Convention claims must be brought on the state level only. This means that if an individual is injured by a space object and wishes to seek compensation under the Liability Convention, the individual must arrange for his or her country to make a claim against the country that launched the space object that caused the damage.See also
- USA 193USA 193USA-193, also known as NRO launch 21 , was an American military spy satellite launched on December 14, 2006. It was the first launch conducted by the United Launch Alliance...
- Cosmos 954Cosmos 954Kosmos 954 was a Soviet Radar Ocean Reconnaissance Satellite with an onboard nuclear reactor. The satellite was launched on September 18, 1977 and was designed to track nuclear submarines...
- SkylabSkylabSkylab was a space station launched and operated by NASA, the space agency of the United States. Skylab orbited the Earth from 1973 to 1979, and included a workshop, a solar observatory, and other systems. It was launched unmanned by a modified Saturn V rocket, with a mass of...
- Space lawSpace lawSpace law is an area of the law that encompasses national and international law governing activities in outer space. International lawyers have been unable to agree on a uniform definition of the term "outer space," although most lawyers agree that outer space generally begins at the lowest...
- Space preservation treatySpace Preservation TreatyThe Space Preservation Treaty is a proposed international treaty from October 2, 2001 to ban space weapons in whole, an expansion on part of the Outer Space Treaty, which bars States Parties to the Treaty from placing nuclear weapons or any other weapons of mass destruction in orbit of Earth,...
- Outer Space TreatyOuter Space TreatyThe Outer Space Treaty, formally the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, is a treaty that forms the basis of international space law...
- Moon TreatyMoon TreatyThe Agreement Governing the Activities of States on the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, better known as the Moon Treaty or Moon Agreement, is an international treaty that turns jurisdiction of all celestial bodies over to the international community...
- Rescue AgreementRescue AgreementThe Agreement on the Rescue of Astronauts, the Return of Astronauts and the Return of Objects Launched into Outer Space, also referred to as the Rescue Agreement is an international agreement setting forth rights and obligations of states concerning the rescue of persons in space...
- Space debrisSpace debrisSpace debris, also known as orbital debris, space junk, and space waste, is the collection of objects in orbit around Earth that were created by humans but no longer serve any useful purpose. These objects consist of everything from spent rocket stages and defunct satellites to erosion, explosion...