Indians defy lunar legalities, buy Moon land after Chandrayaan-3 success

UN Outer Space Treaty Prohibits lunar land ownership, but private sellers persist

Amid the excitement surrounding Chandrayaan-3's successful lunar mission last month, many Indians have been captivated by the idea of owning a piece of the Moon, a tangible "chand ka tukda". However, it's important to note that such transactions raise significant legal questions as the United Nations' Outer Space Treaty clearly prohibits the ownership of lunar land. Nonetheless, private sellers continue to offer lunar properties to eager buyers.

Rupesh Masson, a 49-year-old businessman from Jammu and Kashmir, recently made headlines by claiming to have purchased land on the Moon, specifically in "Luna Earth's Moon, Tract 55-Parcel 10772, known as Lacus Felicitatis (Lake of Happiness)".

Similarly, Sanjay Mahato from Jhargram, West Bengal, decided to surprise his wife with an unconventional birthday gift – a plot of lunar land. Mahato acquired an acre of moon real estate for Rs 10,000, a promise he had made before their marriage.

These stories are not isolated instances. From MBA students grappling with student loans to nurses in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, searching for unique birthday presents for their daughters, many individuals have secured their stake in lunar soil. Astonishingly, they possess official documents substantiating their lunar ownership.

A cursory online search reveals an array of private organisations and websites actively selling land on the Moon – despite the Outer Space Treaty having made it clear that private ownership of space assets is expressly prohibited. Notable among these moon vendors are Lunar Embassy, Luna Society, Cosmic Register, and Moon Estates, primarily operating from the United States and the United Kingdom, offering acres of moon land for as little as $34.99 (approximately Rs 2,890).

Some of these websites have even claimed that celebrities, including former President Donald Trump, have invested in lunar land.

Agencies such as the International Lunar Lands Registry (ILLR) even provide brokerage services for lunar property transactions! ILLR’s website lists 12 lunar sites for purchase, each accompanied by a certificate of land claim, a satellite image, and mineral rights for up to five kilometres below the surface. Additional costs for shipping and processing the deed apply.

Interested buyers are required to follow a step-by-step process resembling an e-commerce platform. While prices vary based on the location, they range from as low as Rs 1,500 per acre ($19) to approximately Rs 10,000 ($120) per acre. The agency even goes on to offer buyers the option to name a lunar crater for around Rs 8,172.28 ($99).

It's important to remember that these offerings, while seemingly affordable and enticing, raise a fundamental question: Is it genuinely possible to purchase lunar property?

The regulations governing lunar and outer space ownership were established in 1967 with the United Nations' Outer Space Treaty, a pact signed by 109 nations, including the US and India. This treaty unequivocally asserts that outer space belongs to "all mankind," and no nation or individual can lay claim to it. So, such private ownership of space assets has no legality.

“A person can only sell something that they own. No one can sell something that everybody owns,” says Kartik Ganapathy, founding partner of IndusLaw, a Delhi-based law firm. “As set out in the Outer Space Treaty, mankind owns outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies,” he adds. 

One particular lunar land merchant, US citizen Dennis Hope, insists otherwise.

In 1980, Hope filed a claim of ownership not only over the Moon but also eight other planets in the solar system and their moons at his local county registrar's office in Contra Costa County, San Francisco. He sent letters to the US government, the Soviet government, and the UN, informing them of his claim, although he received no response.

Hope established the Lunar Embassy the same year to subdivide and sell lunar land. The company boasts to have sold more than 611 million acres, including to three former American presidents: George HW Bush, Jimmy Carter, and Ronald Reagan.

In several media interviews, Christopher Lamar, Hope's son and current CEO of Lunar Embassy, has justified the sales by stating, "(The UN's Outer Space Treaty) talks about how governments cannot own celestial bodies, but it makes no mention of individuals."

Moreover, since it operates as a self-proclaimed "Embassy," the company has "ambassadors" in various countries, including China, South Korea, Japan, and even India.

Closer home, Dehradun resident Rajat Rajan began purchasing land parcels from the Lunar Embassy and reselling them in India during the Covid-19 pandemic, starting with 20 one-acre plots. Within a year, he had sold all of them for Rs 2,500 each. His website, chandpeyzameen.com, states, "Dennis Hope started selling land on the Moon in 1980. Myself, Rajat Rajan from India, purchased land from Mr. Hope for sale in India in 2020." The website also claims that a Bollywood superstar has acquired lunar land, courtesy of Rajan.

The success of Chandrayaan-3 mission now appears to have triggered a "moon rush." The Lunar Registry website reports a surge in orders following Chandrayaan-3's successful landing. "Due to extremely high order volume following the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3, we are currently experiencing lengthy processing and fulfillment delays," it says.

In this emerging lunar land rush, where dreams of moon ownership flourish, the stark reality is that true lunar property ownership remains legally unattainable under the Outer Space Treaty.