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  • Law is complex and doesn't always have a good reputation.

  • But this episode will show the law at its best,

  • helping all humanity build a future amongst the stars.

  • If an astronaut gets lost in space, who comes to the rescue?

  • And how can the law help make a place for everyone in orbit?

  • Firstsomething right out of the movies:

  • what happens in a space emergency?

  • We've seen, in earlier episodes, how astronauts have to follow the law

  • of their own country when they're in space.

  • The law isn't just something that you have to obey;

  • it protects you too.

  • So, what happens when you're a long way from home?

  • How could your country's laws protect you?

  • If an Indian astronaut got into trouble in space,

  • international law says it's not just India's responsibility to help.

  • The Outer Space Treaty and Rescue Agreement

  • means that other countries should attempt to help.

  • More than 130 countries have signed the OST.

  • And if an astronaut crash-lands in another country,

  • the treaty means that they have to be returned home safely.

  • So, has the Rescue Treaty ever been needed?

  • Here's space lawyer, Deepika Jayakodi:

  • In reality, there hasn't been a case

  • where astronauts have been rescued.

  • When the Apollo 13 mission was going on,

  • there was a risk that people anticipated.

  • The mission had to be aborted

  • and, although nothing crazy happened,

  • then USSR offered to assist USA

  • in case they had to rescue astronauts.

  • Although astronauts haven't yet needed to be rescued,

  • the USSR offered help to American astronauts

  • when the Apollo mission went wrong.

  • So, what if a country didn't help?

  • A country can be held responsible

  • and by holding someone responsible,

  • it could mean that you look into other provisions

  • under international law, to see if they can provide a compensation,

  • or just to show that you haven't fulfilled

  • a moral and a legal obligation to do something.

  • Countries that don't help might have to pay compensation,

  • and it would damage their reputation.

  • What about private companies?

  • Private companies come under... under the control of a country.

  • So, if a country is obligated to render this assistance,

  • then the private company is obligated as well.

  • Companies also have to help astronauts in need,

  • because they come under the control of countries.

  • Deepika explained how a new agreement,

  • called the Artemis Accords, strengthened the Rescue Agreement.

  • The Artemis Accords states that

  • if there is someone in danger,

  • if they require emergency assistance,

  • then the countries or even the companies

  • who are working on the Moonthey should be...

  • they should extend help to those in need.

  • The Artemis Accords echo the Rescue Agreement.

  • They say countries and companies working on the Moon

  • must help those in need.

  • The rescue agreement remains a good example

  • of how space law shows lawmakers at their best.

  • There's something very solid,

  • which shows just how well we can work together,

  • and it's probably gone right over your head.

  • Two small spacecraft,

  • locked together high above the Earth.

  • These are the Russian Zarya and the American Unity,

  • joining together in 1998.

  • They might not look like much, but they grew

  • into one of humanity's greatest achievements.

  • Bit by bit, spinning through the skies,

  • the structure grew to become the International Space Station.

  • It came about after the end of the Cold War:

  • a symbol of hope more than 400km above the Earth.

  • It's more than 100m wide and getting bigger,

  • circling the Earth fifteen times a day.

  • It's home to astronauts from all over the globe,

  • from countries that haven't always been friendly,

  • working together to help us understand the universe.

  • So, how did people ever agree to build this together?

  • Here's space lawyer, Jessica Noble, to explain:

  • So, in order to build the International Space Station,

  • a multilateral treaty needed to be put in place.

  • Now, a multilateral treaty is an agreement

  • between more than one nation,

  • and a group of nations had come together

  • in support of building the International Space Station.

  • So, this was the United States,

  • Russia, Canada, Japan

  • and the European countries,

  • which comprise the membership of the European Space Agency.

  • Fifteen nations partnered to build the International Space Station.

  • They needed to sign an agreement called a multilateral treaty

  • an agreement between more than one country.

  • So, on the ISS, do all the astronauts follow one set of laws?

  • You have the intergovernmental agreement,

  • which applies to the activities on the International Space Station,

  • but each country that contributed to the ISS

  • contributed a portion of hardware to it,

  • and in each of these hardware segments, or elements,

  • the country's national law applies.

  • So, for the US element, US national law applies in that segment.

  • In the Russian element, Russian law applies in that segment.

  • So, you have... you have different national laws

  • that govern activities in those individual segments of the ISS.

  • The law of the nation that built each part of the ISS

  • applies in that part that the country built.

  • So, American laws in the American bits,

  • Russian laws in the Russian bits.

  • But does any one country have more power than any other up there?

  • No one country has more power than...

  • than another under the intergovernmental agreement.

  • This is a true multilateral agreement amongst these...

  • these countries who are partners on the International Space Station.

  • The agreement about the ISS means no one country

  • has more legal power on the International Space Station.

  • Does that apply to the scientific work they're doing up there?

  • There's a concept of cooperation

  • and sharing of information related to scientific discoveries

  • on board the International Space Station.

  • So... and this actually comes from the Outer Space Treaty as well,

  • and the idea that scientific discoveries made in space

  • should be shared with all countries.

  • So, if you're a partner on the International Space Station

  • and you are making discoveries on the ISS,

  • that information needs to be made public.

  • All discoveries made in space should be for everyone.

  • That means all the scientific discoveries

  • made on the International Space Station

  • should also be for everyone.

  • The International Space Station:

  • a marvel of complicated technology and complicated lawmaking.

  • It shows how the rules of space law help rivals work together

  • now and hopefully into the future,

  • as we head out into the stars.

Law is complex and doesn't always have a good reputation.

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