Blockchain applications and the relational normativity of international space law

IF 2.7 4区社会学 Q2 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Space Policy Pub Date : 2026-05-01 Epub Date: 2025-12-20 DOI:10.1016/j.spacepol.2025.101744

Alexey Ilin

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Blockchain technology promises to transform the management of space missions, yet its employment also risks disrupting the rule of law in outer space. Blockchain applications for coordination and peer-to-peer regulation of space activities may undermine the guiding principles of international space law, which are the authorization and supervision of private entities by their respective states. This paper views relationships between space actors as one of the three interdependent sources from which international space law derives its binding force. We analyze how public and private actors can utilize blockchain technology to alter the quality and structure of their relationships, thus affecting the relational normativity of the space legal regime. We argue that the interaction between space blockchain applications and international space law has no predetermined outcome. States can integrate blockchain applications into their regulatory frameworks, while private actors might develop decentralized governance structures that render state authorization and supervision redundant. The key variable determining either of these outcomes is the trust between state and non-state actors.

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国际空间法的应用和关系规范性

区块链技术有望改变空间任务的管理，但其使用也有可能破坏外层空间的法治。对空间活动进行协调和点对点监管的申请可能会破坏国际空间法的指导原则，即由各自国家授权和监督私营实体。本文将空间行为体之间的关系视为国际空间法产生其约束力的三个相互依存的来源之一。我们分析了公共和私人行为体如何利用区块链技术改变其关系的质量和结构，从而影响空间法律制度的关系规范性。我们认为，外空应用与国际空间法之间的相互作用没有预先确定的结果。国家可以将bb0应用程序整合到其监管框架中，而私人行为者可能会开发分散的治理结构，从而使国家授权和监督变得多余。决定这两种结果的关键变量是国家和非国家行为体之间的信任。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Space Policy Multiple-

CiteScore

3.40

自引率

36.40%

发文量

期刊介绍： Space Policy is an international, interdisciplinary journal which draws on the fields of international relations, economics, history, aerospace studies, security studies, development studies, political science and ethics to provide discussion and analysis of space activities in their political, economic, industrial, legal, cultural and social contexts. Alongside full-length papers, which are subject to a double-blind peer review system, the journal publishes opinion pieces, case studies and short reports and, in so doing, it aims to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and opinions and a means by which authors can alert policy makers and international organizations to their views. Space Policy is also a journal of record, reproducing, in whole or part, official documents such as treaties, space agency plans or government reports relevant to the space community. Views expressed in the journal are not necessarily those of the editors or members of the editorial board.