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Dr Thomas Cheney
Space Governance Scholar
Using legal geography and environmental humanities to better understanding space resources, space exploration, space settlement and more!
Taking Space War Seriously
Review of: Bleddyn E Bowen Original Sin: Power, Technology and War in Outer Space (Hurst 2022) Bleddyn Bowen’s Original Sin serves as a...
thomcheney
Nov 7, 20224 min read
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Apolitical is political: The British Empire and the Death of Queen Elizabeth II
The death of a head of state is always a significant event, particularly when they are still in office. The death of Queen Elizabeth II...
thomcheney
Sep 9, 20225 min read
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What I’m Reading: Agonies of Empire
Michael Cox Agonies of Empire: American Power from Clinton to Biden (Bristol UP 2022) https://bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/the-agonies-of...
thomcheney
Mar 7, 20222 min read
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In Defence of International Law
I write this on the morning of Thursday 24 February 2022. I have woken up to the news of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[1] This is a...
thomcheney
Feb 24, 20227 min read
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On Terraforming (Part Two: Is it Legal?)
There’s a long and short answer to the question of whether terraforming is legal, and (un)fortunately one word covers both: maybe. In...
thomcheney
Jan 28, 20228 min read
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On Terraforming (Part One: An Introduction)
This will be the first in a series of posts on this topic, I’ll fully admit that I don’t have a plan but I have at least three more in...
thomcheney
Jan 21, 20225 min read
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New Year, New(ish) Blog
Hello and welcome (or welcome back)! I have been debating relaunching this blog for a good six months now, and getting all wrapped up in...
thomcheney
Jan 19, 20223 min read
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Apollo 11 and Space Law
Today marks the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 landing on the Moon, and what better way to celebrate than a look at the space law involved...
thomcheney
Jul 20, 20197 min read
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Space Resources at the UN
Once again, I attended the Legal Subcommittee of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) as part of the...
thomcheney
Apr 9, 20194 min read
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Updating Space Law
This post is on a topic that I have been mulling for some time now, but was prompted by the recent editorial in the Financial Times...
thomcheney
Jan 7, 20195 min read
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Discussing Space Mining in Luxembourg
The second meeting of the second phase of The Hague International Space Resources Governance Working Group (hereafter ‘the Working...
thomcheney
Dec 3, 20183 min read
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IAC 2018
The International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Bremen during the first week in October was the first time that I had attended an IAC....
thomcheney
Oct 12, 20184 min read
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Brexit and Space, Again…
This is, what I believe the ‘kids’ would call, a ‘hot take’[1] on the European Parliament’s Industry, Research, Telecoms and Energy...
thomcheney
Sep 24, 20184 min read
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United States Space Force: Some Thoughts
Recently US Vice President Mike Pence reaffirmed the Trump Administration’s intention to establish a United States ‘space force’.[1] This...
thomcheney
Aug 24, 20189 min read
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UNISPACE+50
Last month UNISPACE+50[1] was held at the United Nations in Vienna, it was, in part, a commemoration of the first United Nations...
thomcheney
Jul 13, 20185 min read
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SGF2 and Space for Women
The Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) was founded in 1999 as a result of the Third United Nations Conference on the Peaceful Uses...
thomcheney
Jun 19, 20186 min read
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UNCOPUOS Legal Subcommittee 2018
Once again, I recently spent time as part of the SGAC delegation to the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) Legal...
thomcheney
Apr 27, 20185 min read
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The Rescue Agreement at 50: The IISL/ECSL Symposium
The first Monday afternoon of the annual session of the United Nations (UN) Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS)...
thomcheney
Apr 15, 20186 min read
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Space Law in Paris
Once again, I spent a few days in March in the heart of Paris listening to people talk about space law and doing some talking about space...
thomcheney
Apr 8, 20186 min read
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Defining ‘Outer Space’
As with a number of space law terms, the space treaties do not provide a definition of outer space. While for the most part a...
thomcheney
Feb 12, 20185 min read
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