Lyall, Francis --- "Climate Change and Space Law" [2012] ELECD 742; in Rayfuse, Rosemary; Scott, V. Shirley (eds), "International Law in the Era of Climate Change" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2012)

Book Title: International Law in the Era of Climate Change

Editor(s): Rayfuse, Rosemary; Scott, V. Shirley

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781849800303

Section: Chapter 7

Section Title: Climate Change and Space Law

Author(s): Lyall, Francis

Number of pages: 15

Extract:

7. Climate change and space law
Francis Lyall

INTRODUCTION
Space itself is unaffected by climate change. At first glance there would
therefore appear to be very limited application or relevance of space law in
the context of a discussion of climate change. However, space and space law
are relevant to climate change in at least three ways. First, the use of space
has increased in connection with the phenomenon. Satellites are used for
basic weather monitoring, for the acquisition of data for scientific purposes
and for the monitoring of compliance with international climate agree-
ments.1 Satellites are also important in disaster management, a role likely to
increase in a climate change challenged world.2 Space law, which encom-
passes the rules and statements governing the use of space and space
technologies including for monitoring climate change, may thus have to be
adapted to better facilitate environmental monitoring by satellite. Second,
the use of space and various space technologies have been suggested as
providing methods by which climate change might be mitigated. Geo-
engineering proposals such as the placing of vast arrays of mirrors in space

1
P.J. Gibson, Introductory Remote Sensing: Principles and Concepts (London:
Routledge 2000); P.E. Clark and M.L. Rilee, Remote Sensing Tools for Exploration
(New York: Springer, 2010). See also, World Meteorological Organisation, Space
and Climate Change: Use of Space-Based Technologies in the United Nations
System, WMO No. 1081 (2011).
2
Cf., the Charter on Cooperation to Achieve the Coordinated Use of ...