Moss Pigs in Space: Legal Lessons from Tardigrades on the Moon

Abstract

The international community’s concern for the environmental impacts in outer space is predates the 1972 Stockholm Declaration and is often viewed as the first fundamental international statement on the protection of the environment. As Space Exploration continues to ramp up, with both private and public actors seeking to go boldly where few have gone before, there is a growing need to assess the protocols currently in place to both protect the space environments from earthbased contamination, as well as to protect the Earth from space contaminants. Recent crashes of probes on the lunar surface and intentional launches of microscopic life forms and other biological matter into outer space by public and private actors raise questions about the efficacy of the current regulatory scheme, which was designed before commercial space exploration was envisioned to the degree that it exists. This Article outlines planetary protection protocols, analyzes a case study of lunar contamination, the history of planetary protection regulations, and humanity's historic contamination of the moon, before pointing to effective models of terrestrial international environmental treaties and agreements that provide useful guidance for developing new planetary protection protocols.