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Adoption and background

December 2019

    December 2019, in its Resolution 74/82 the United Nations General Assembly welcomed with
    appreciation the adoption by the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS)
    of the preamble and 21 guidelines for the long-term sustainability of outer space activities and
    the establishment, under a five -year workplan, of a working group under the agenda item on
    the long-term sustainability of outer space activities of the Scientific and Technical
    Subcommittee of COPUOS. In its Resolution, the General Assemly noted that COPUOS
    encouraged States and international intergovernmental organizations to voluntarily
    take measures to ensure that the guidelines were implemented to the greatest extent
    feasible and practicable, and emphasized that COPUOS serves as the principal
    forum for continued institutionalized dialogue on issues related to the implementation
    and review of the Guidelines. 

 

June 2019

Celebration at COPUOS after the adoption of the LTS Guidelines 

    In June 2019, the Guidelines for the Long-term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities,
    which had been negotiated by the Working Group on the Long-term Sustainability of
    Outer Space Activities, were adopted by the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer
    Space (A/74/20, para. 163 and Annex II). At the same session, the Committee also
    decided to establish a new working group under the long-term sustainability agenda
    item of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee (A/74/20, para. 165). ​

2018

 

 

 

    In 2018, consensus was reached at the fifty-fifth session of the Subcommittee on a preamble
    and nine additional guidelines (A/AC.105/1167, Annex III). ​

2016

 

 

 

    At the fifty-ninth session of COPUOS, in June 2016, a first set of guidelines for the
    long-term sustainability of outer space activities was agreed upon (A/71/20, Annex). ​

2010

 

 

    The Working Group on the Long-term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities was established
    in 2010 under the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the Committee on the Peaceful
    Uses of Outer Space (A/AC.105/958, para. 181) to identify areas of concern for the long-term
    sustainability of outer space activities, propose measures that could enhance sustainability,
    and produce voluntary guidelines to reduce risks to the long-term sustainability of outer
    space activities.

In short – Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) and its Subcommittees

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • The Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) was set up by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1959.
     
  • Since its establishment, COPUOS membership has continued to expand.
     
  • COPUOS is the only committee of the United Nations General Assembly dealing exclusively with international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space, and its role as a forum to monitor and discuss developments related to the exploration and use of outer space has evolved alongside with the technical advancements in space exploration, geopolitical changes, and the evolving use of space science and technology for sustainable development.
     
  • COPUOS is serviced by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA).
     
  • COPUOS meets annually in Vienna, Austria, to discuss questions relating to current and future activities in space.
     
  • COPUOS has two subcommittees: 
     

  1. The Scientific and Technical Subcommittee (STSC) meets every year for two weeks to discuss questions related to the scientific and technical aspects of space activities.
     

  2. The Legal Subcommittee (LSC) meets every year for two weeks to discuss legal questions related to the exploration and use of outer space.