Celestial Real Estate Now Available, Cheap! Part II
Given that we're still an Earthbound culture, the idea of buying celestial real estate may seem a little silly... but lots of people are doing it
You may think that the idea of purchasing celestial real estate is about as logical as a screen door on a submarine, but hey, five million people in 176 countries can't be wrong! Right?
Well, let's see. Millions of people also thought that Milli Vanilli was pretty cool, too. And don't forget Pet Rocks and Tamagachi. (If you don't remember any of these things, there's a good reason for that).
Be that as it may, lots of people really do buy real estate on other planets, and it's made several people rich. But what are they thinking?
Is this legal?
That's hard to say. In Part I, we discussed the U.N. Outer Space Treaty and the fact that it doesn't specifically prohibit individual ownership of land on planetary bodies. But several astronomical organizations are already working to fix that, so don't expect that loophole to last much longer, if it isn't gone already.
It's a moot point at the moment, since no one's likely to get to any of the planets these companies are selling off anytime soon. We won't be back to the Moon for at least 10 years, and who knows how long it'll be before a manned Mars mission happens?
Legal scholars argue that it's all bogus, of course. Still, that hasn't kept all those people, including more than 1,300 corporations, from buying real estate on other planets. The tax rate on Mars is really low, after all.
Practical difficulties
The thing about claiming any piece of land is that you've got to prove you own it within a tightly-regulated legal framework - that, or fight to hold onto it. Until spaceflight becomes as common as flying cross-continent, that ain't gonna happen with property on the moon.
Plus, it's a given that the U.N., not to mention spacegoing countries like the U.S. and Russia, aren't likely to agree with your claim when the day finally comes that we actually occupy some of these worlds. It may be possible to fight City Hall, but it's not so easy to fight the U.S. Marine Corps.
The bottom line
Being able to buy land on the Moon, Mars, Io, or the fifth planet of Alpha Centauri A is kinda cool, but don't attach any real meaning to it. You can "officially" name a star, too, but don't expect any astronomers to start calling it "Conway Twitty's Star" anytime soon.
http://www.starregistry.com/
When you buy someone a piece of the Moon, what they end up with is a neat little certificate to put on the wall. It's basically a novelty, something to grin about. Speculating in celestial real estate is harmless fun, but that's all it is.