| in Interesting Facts Space
To "govern" the moon, the United Nations has an Outer Space Treaty.
The United Nations signed the Outer Space Treaty in 1967, two years before astronauts first landed on the moon, to avert a dangerous game of claiming dibs on the moon or any planet. The treaty's highlights include a determination that "the research and use of outer space, including the moon as well as other celestial bodies, shall be carried out for the beneficial and in the interests of all countries," as well as a rule that treaty parties "shall not place in orbit around the earth any objects transporting nuclear weapons or any other types of weapons of mass destruction." That's certainly reassuring!