SPACE POLICY THROUGH
THE DECADES
1950
1960
NASA Long Range Plan, 1959
An outline of the long term national
objectives for the United States.
There are eight goals, including human
space travel, and a timeline that
details each target in specific years.
1960
Outer Space Treaty, 1967
This is an international treaty that bans nuclear
weapons in space, limits the moon and other
celestial bodies to only peaceful uses, establishes
space free to be explored by all nations, and
prohibiting any nation from claiming sovereignty
in space.
1970
Registration Convention, 1976
Provisions that require nations to
provide details to the United Nations,
like date and location of launch, and
also basic orbital parameters for each
space object.
1980
Moon Agreement, 1984
A multilateral treaty that proposes to
establish an international regime that
applies to the moon and other
celestial bodies, with 21 provisions
that outline the behavior of nations
who explore celestial bodies.
1990
ISS Agreement, 1998
Provides that NASA is the lead agency
in coordinating the member states’
contributions and activities on the
International Space Station, and that
each nation has jurisdiction over its
own modules.
2000
1960
NASA Authorization Act, 2005
Law that explained the new visions for
space exploration, emphasizing that the
programs should be balanced among
space science, human spaceflight, and
aeronautics. It also established the ISS
as a national laboratory.
1980
1970
2010
Space Debris Mitigation Standards, 2018
UN guidelines and ISO requirements
on space debris to encourage
organizations to limit debris during
operations, post-mission disposal,
and prevention of on-orbit collisions.
2020
1980
Artemis Accords, 2020
Written by NASA and US Department
of State, it establishes a framework
for peaceful cooperation in the
exploration of the Moon, Mars, and
other astromonical objects.
