Under the terms of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, no signatory can claim territory in space, beyond that necessary for the support of bases.
We need to withdraw from the 1967 Outer Space Treaty and the 1979 Moon Treaty, which I believe had some of the same restrictions.
BS, I own the moon. Here are copies of e-mails I sent:
International Astronomical Union
Dear Sir:
It has become to my attention that there is an astronomical body without a name and I’d like it to be named after me.
I understand that solar system bodies, when discovered, are first assigned a number, then, after consideration by your body, are assigned a name.
The moons of Mars are named Phobos and Deimos. The moons of Jupiter are (among others) Io and Europia.
However, the moon of the planet Earth is officially listed as “THE MOON”. Gentlemen, this violates all custom of astronomical convention. In addition, it offends me.
Moons of planets have always been named after mythological figures, however, the moon of earth, somehow has been overlooked.
Since I discovered this fact, I suggest, no, I demand that the moon of Earth be named “LOKIBOB” after me.
This name is in accordance with tradition since LOKI is the Norse God of mischief, and I am a legend in my own mind.
Thank you for you consideration in this matter,
Robert
LOKIBOB on the Internet.
Dear Robert,
Thank you for bringing this problem to our attention.
We met in executive session after receipt of your letter concerning the naming of the planets Earth’s moon.
You are correct, we have overlooked the naming of Earth’s satellite. We have been derelict in our duties, and the Secretary of Satellite Naming (SSN) has received a written reprimand for this oversight.
In accordance with our established procedure, the satellite of Earth has been assigned a number. This number reflects the year when the moon was discovered. We had to guess when this was, and the SSN suggested that we know it was at least one million years ago, so we decided to name it -1,000,000 for the interim.
For the present time, all references to the moon will be -1,000,000 and all agencies have been notified.
NASA is in a dither, since the entire Moon program has to be renamed “The -1,000,000” program. I think you will agree that this name just doesn’t have the snap.
Next month (September) we will be having a meeting to consider the official name of -1,000,000 . Be assured your suggestion of “LOKIBOB” is on the list for consideration.
We have not made the general public aware of this problem, because we know that every person on the Internet with a screen name even remotely sounding like a God will submit their name.
Yours Truly,
Francis Cancain,
Supreme Commander
International Astronomical Union
Dear Robert (LOKIBOB),
We are pleased to announce that the moon of Earth has been renamed LOKIBOB.
Francis Cancain,
Supreme Commander
International Astronomical Union