Signed at
Washington,
London,
Moscow,
January 27, 1967
Ratification advised by
U.S. Senate April 25, 1967
Ratified by U.S.
President May 24, 1967
U.S. ratification
deposited at Washington, London, and Moscow
October 10, 1967
Proclaimed by U.S. President
October 10, 1967
Entered into
force October 10, 1967
The States
Parties to this
Treaty,
Inspired by the
great prospects opening up before
mankind as a
result of
mans entry into
outer space,
Recognizing the
common interest of all mankind in the
progress of the
exploration and use of outer space for
peaceful purposes,
Believing that the exploration and use of
outer space should be carried on for the
benefit of all peoples
irrespective of the
degree of their
economic or
scientific development,
Desiring to
contribute to
broad international co-operation in the
scientific as well as the
legal aspects of the exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes,
Believing that such co-operation will contribute to the development of
mutual understanding and to the
strengthening of
friendly relations between States and
peoples,
Recalling
resolution 1962 (XVIII), entitled "
Declaration of Legal Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space," which was
adopted unanimously by the
United Nations General Assembly on 13
December 1963,
Recalling
resolution 1884 (XVIII), calling upon States to
refrain from placing in
orbit around the
Earth any objects carrying
nuclear weapons or any other kinds of weapons of
mass destruction or from installing such
weapons on
celestial bodies, which was adopted unanimously by the
United Nations General Assembly on 17 October 1963,
Taking
account of United Nations General Assembly resolution 110 (II) of 3 November 1947, which
condemned propaganda designed or likely to
provoke or
encourage any threat to the
peace, breach of the peace or
act of aggression, and considering that the aforementioned resolution is applicable to outer space,
Convinced that a Treaty on Principles
Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, will further the Purposes and Principles of the
Charter of the United Nations,
Have
agreed on the following:
Article I
The
exploration and use of outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, shall be
carried out for the
benefit and in the
interests of all
countries, irrespective of their degree of
economic or scientific development, and shall be the
province of
all mankind.
Outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, shall be
free for
exploration and use
by all States without
discrimination of any kind, on a
basis of
equality and in
accordance with
international law, and there shall be
free access to all areas of celestial bodies.
There shall be
freedom of
scientific investigation in outer space, including the moon and other
celestial bodies, and States shall
facilitate and
encourage international co-operation in such
investigation.
Article II
Outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, is
not subject to
national
appropriation by claim of
sovereignty, by means of use or
occupation, or by any other means.
Article III
States Parties to the
Treaty shall carry on activities in the
exploration and use of outer space,
including the moon and other celestial bodies, in
accordance with international law, including the
Charter of the
United Nations, in the interest of maintaining international peace and security and promoting international co-operation and understanding.
Article IV
States Parties to the Treaty
undertake not to place in
orbit around the Earth any objects carrying
nuclear weapons or any other kinds of
weapons of mass
destruction, install such weapons on
celestial bodies, or station such weapons in outer space in any other manner.
The Moon and other celestial bodies shall be used by all States Parties to the Treaty
exclusively
for
peaceful purposes. The establishment of
military bases,
installations and
fortifications, the
testing of any type of weapons and the
conduct of military
maneuvers on celestial bodies shall be
forbidden. The use of military
personnel for
scientific research or for any other peaceful purposes
shall not be prohibited. The use of any equipment or facility necessary for peaceful exploration
of the Moon and other celestial bodies shall also not be prohibited.
Article V
States Parties to the Treaty shall regard
astronauts as
envoys of
mankind in outer space and shall
render to them all possible
assistance in the event of
accident,
distress, or
emergency landing on
the territory of another State Party or on the high seas. When astronauts make such a
landing,
they shall be safely and promptly returned to the State of
registry of their space vehicle.
In carrying on activities in outer space and on celestial bodies, the astronauts of one State Party
shall render all possible
assistance to the
astronauts of other States Parties.
States Parties to the Treaty shall
immediately inform the other States Parties to the Treaty or the
Secretary-General of the
United Nations of any
phenomena they
discover in outer space,
including the Moon and other celestial bodies, which could
constitute a
danger to the
life or
health of astronauts.
Article VI
States Parties to the Treaty shall bear
international responsibility for
national activities in outer
space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, whether such activities are carried on by
governmental agencies or by non-governmental entities, and for assuring that
national activities
are carried out in
conformity with the
provisions set
forth in the present Treaty. The activities of
non-governmental entities in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, shall
require
authorization and continuing
supervision by the appropriate State Party to the Treaty.
When activities are carried on in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, by
an
international organization, responsibility for compliance with this Treaty shall be
borne both
by the international organization and by the States Parties to the Treaty participating in such
organization.
Article VII
Each State Party to the Treaty that
launches or
procures the launching of an object into outer
space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, and each State Party from whose
territory
or
facility an object is launched, is internationally
liable for
damage to another State Party to the
Treaty or to its
natural or
juridical persons by such object or its component parts on the Earth, in
air space or in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies.
Article VIII
A State Party to the Treaty on whose
registry an object
launched into outer space is carried shall
retain jurisdiction and control over such
object, and over any personnel
thereof, while in outer
space or on a celestial body.
Ownership of objects
launched into outer
space, including objects
landed or constructed on a celestial body, and of their
component parts, is not
affected by their
presence in outer space or on a celestial body or by their return to the Earth. Such objects or
component parts found
beyond the
limits of the
State Party to the Treaty on whose
registry they
are carried shall be returned to that State Party, which shall, upon request, furnish
identifying
data prior to their return.
Article IX
In the
exploration and use of outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, States
Parties to the Treaty shall be guided by the principle of co-operation and mutual assistance and
shall conduct all their activities in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies,
with due
regard to the corresponding interests of all other States Parties to the Treaty. States
Parties to the Treaty shall pursue studies of outer space, including the Moon and other celestial
bodies, and
conduct exploration of them so as to avoid their
harmful contamination and also
adverse changes in the environment of the Earth resulting from the
introduction of
extraterrestrial
matter and, where necessary, shall adopt
appropriate measures for this
purpose. If a State Party to
the Treaty has reason to believe that an activity or experiment planned by it or its
nationals in
outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, would cause potentially harmful
interference with activities of other States Parties in the peaceful exploration and use of outer
space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, it shall
undertake appropriate international
consultations before proceeding with any such activity or
experiment. A State Party to the Treaty
which has reason to believe that an activity or experiment planned by another State Party in outer
space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, would cause potentially
harmful
interference with activities in the peaceful exploration and use of outer space, including the
Moon and other celestial bodies, may request consultation concerning the
activity or
experiment.
Article X
In order to
promote international co-operation in the exploration and use of outer space,
including the Moon and other celestial bodies, in
conformity with the purposes of this Treaty, the
States Parties to the Treaty shall consider on a
basis of
equality any requests by other States
Parties to the Treaty to be
afforded an
opportunity to observe the
flight of space objects launched
by those States.
The nature of such an opportunity for
observation and the
conditions under which it could be
afforded shall be
determined by
agreement between the States
concerned.
Article XI
In order to promote international co-operation in the peaceful exploration and use of outer space,
States Parties to the Treaty conducting activities in outer space, including the Moon and other
celestial bodies, agree to
inform the
Secretary-General of the
United Nations as well as the
public and the international
scientific community, to
the greatest extent
feasible and
practicable, of the
nature,
conduct,
locations and
results of such
activities. On receiving the said information, the Secretary-General of the United Nations should
be prepared to
disseminate it immediately and effectively.
Article XII
All
stations,
installations,
equipment and
space vehicles on the Moon and other celestial bodies
shall be
open to representatives of other States Parties to the Treaty on a basis of
reciprocity.
Such
representatives shall give reasonable advance notice of a projected visit, in order that appropriate consultations may be held and that maximum precautions may be taken to
assure
safety and to avoid interference with normal operations in the facility to be visited.
Article XIII
The provisions of this Treaty shall
apply to the activities of States Parties to the Treaty in the
exploration and use of outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, whether such
activities are carried on by a single State Party to the Treaty or jointly with other States,
including cases where they are carried on within the
framework of international
intergovernmental organizations.
Any
practical questions arising in connection with activities carried on by international
inter-governmental organizations in the exploration and use of outer space, including the Moon
and other celestial bodies, shall be resolved by the States Parties to the Treaty either with the
appropriate international
organization or with one or more States members of that international
organization, which are Parties to this Treaty.
Article XIV
1. This Treaty shall be
open to all States for
signature. Any State which does not sign this Treaty
before its
entry into
force in
accordance with paragraph 3 of this article may
accede to it at any
time.
2. This Treaty shall be subject to
ratification by
signatory States.
Instruments of
ratification and
instruments of accession shall be deposited with the
Governments of the
United States of
America, the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the
Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics, which are hereby designated the
Depositary Governments.
3. This
Treaty shall enter into
force upon the deposit of
instruments of ratification by
five
Governments including the Governments designated as Depositary Governments under this
Treaty.
4. For States whose
instruments of
ratification or
accession are deposited subsequent to the entry
into force of this Treaty, it shall enter into force on the
date of the
deposit of their instruments of
ratification or
accession.
5. The
Depositary Governments shall promptly inform all
signatory and
acceding States of the
date of each signature, the date of deposit of each instrument of ratification of and accession to
this Treaty, the date of its entry into force and other notices.
6. This Treaty shall be
registered by the Depositary Governments pursuant to Article 102 of the
Charter of the United Nations.
Article XV
Any State Party to the Treaty may propose
amendments to this Treaty. Amendments shall enter
into force for each State Party to the Treaty
accepting the amendments upon their acceptance by
a
majority of the States Parties to the Treaty and thereafter for each
remaining State Party to the Treaty on the
date of acceptance by it.
Article XVI
Any State Party to the Treaty may give
notice of its
withdrawal from the Treaty
one year after its
entry into force by written
notification to the Depositary Governments. Such withdrawal shall
take effect one year from the date of receipt of this
notification.
Article XVII
This Treaty, of which the
English,
Russian,
French,
Spanish and
Chinese texts are equally
authentic, shall be deposited in the archives of the Depositary Governments.
Duly certified
copies of this Treaty shall be
transmitted by the Depositary Governments to the Governments of
the signatory and acceding States.