Licensing lunar resource activities. The case of the Japan-based company ispace

The matters related to lunar resources are part of the broader issue of exploring and using natural space resources. This article aims to engage in the ongoing debate on such resources by exploring the legal case of the Japan-based company ispace. The Japanese government granted ispace two licences to land and conduct commercial activities on the lunar soil, including the collection and transfer of ownership of natural lunar resources to a customer, under its 2021 Space Resources Act. These licenses are the firsts for similar operations, and for the first time, we faced the shift from the ius preceding the fact to the fact itself. Consequently, the ispace legal case provides a model to follow in understanding what a licence for similar activities might look like and which challenges it may pose. By focusing on Japan’s national space legislation, this research first explores the international and national legal regimes applicable to the authorisation of commercial lunar resource activities. Secondly, it reflects on the issue related to the legitimacy of the acquisition of rights over natural space resources under international law and the potential contribution of national space legislation to this end.