ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with space objects, reserving many questions of astronauts for separate treatment. The concept of an official register maintained for various purposes is old. In most countries information as to the ownership of immoveable property is compiled on an official register. Many types of mobile property are similarly dealt with. The registration of space objects is now commonly catered for under the Convention on the Registration of Objects Launched into Outer Space of 1975. Space objects, or their parts, found outwith the territory of the state of registry are to be returned to that state, which may be asked first to provide identifying data. These obligations are further explicated by the Agreement on the Rescue and Return of Astronauts (ARRA). ARRA distinguishes between the duties owed by contracting parties to the personnel of a spacecraft and those in relation to a space object.
