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Adoption and background of the Guidelines

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 Assembly 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.