Who Owns the Moon?: And Other Conundrums of Exploring and Using Space
by Cynthia Levinson and Jennifer Swanson
Middle School, High School    Quinlin/Peachtree    208 pp.
1/25    9781682635377    $22.99
e-book ed.  9781682636831    $13.99

Approximately fifty years after Apollo 17, NASA’s last mission to the moon in 1972, Americans are planning to return. This time the goals are different: landing a diverse crew of astronauts; establishing a base from which to launch deep-space exploration; and studying the moon’s resources. But how will these goals be managed? Will the proposed base belong to a single nation or be constructed cooperatively by many nations? What about private companies that go to the moon—would they operate under the same treaties and norms as nations? And then there is space junk—approximately thirty-five thousand pieces of debris littering outer space. Should there be laws dealing with this problem? Beginning with a concise history of the space race, the authors outline the accomplishments and tensions inherent in occupying space. They also discuss the myriad definitions of space itself, asking the question: where does a nation’s air space end and become outer space? A thoughtful discussion of the Outer Space Treaty, developed in 1967 to govern space law, and its modifications allows readers the background to consider these critical issues. Sidebars, diagrams, and photographs smartly break up and enhance the conversational text. Appended to this informative account is an authors’ note, a list of acronyms, documentation, a select bibliography, and an index.

From the ">May/June 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.