Science Speakeasy - Who owns space?
Thursday 14th July 2022 from 19:30pm to 21:45pm
Life Science Centre - Newcastle
Times Square, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, NE1 4EP
It’s now 65 years since humans first sent a satellite up into space, but the area surrounding Earth has started to get crowded. So the Life Science Centre team is kicking off a new season of Science Speakeasy by exploring some big questions surrounding space ownership, boundaries, laws and ethics.
So grab a drink and take a seat under Gaia (the mesmerising 7-metre recreation of our wonderful world) as we debate:
- Who is responsible for the space ‘junk’ orbiting our planet?
- What gives big businesses the right to assume ownership of space?
- Who gets to decide that it’s okay to put satellites or rockets up into space when they can impact our view of our intergalactic backyard?
- Do we have a right to make other planets suitable for human habitation when we’ve done such a bad job of looking after our own?
- What is Space Law, and how do we enforce it?
Please note that this has already taken place on 14/07/2022
Event booking
Event darkness
The below chart shows if and when the skies will be at their darkest during this event. Moonlight is shown in light yellow and the Sun's twilight in light blue. Midnight on the date shown is shown as a white line with sunset to the left and sunrise the next morning to the right. A black background with stars shows the best times for stargazing.
Thu 14th Jul
Local light pollution
Life Science Centre - Newcastle is estimated to have light pollution levels similar to an urban location based on the latest data from the VIIRS satellite.
-
Urban
-
Suburban
-
Semi-rural
-
Rural
-
Dark site
The above demonstrates the estimated effect of light pollution - graphics created using Stellarium.
Stay and gaze nearby
Stay at one of these stargazing-friendly accommodation providers.