October 2007? Already?
Ok, good time to note a few events of legal interest this anniversary month (and a bit beyond), each of which in its own way serves to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the space age, gallantly ushered in by that noisy, Earth-rocking, mind-blowing, shiny little ball of a spacecraft on October 4, 1957. Thank you, Спутник-1 (Sputnik 1).
After all, reflecting back on the pre-space age, it's clear that here on the home planet the legal profession, having grown quite old and dullish, cried out for a dazzling new specialty. For bored lawyers, the dawn of the space age came not a moment too soon.
Here are some law-related gatherings nicely timed for Sputnik's anniversary. (And of course HobbySpace and its blogs cover all the goings-on for the space anniversary season.)
ABA Forum on Air & Space Law Annual Meeting - Oct. 3–5, 2007, Peabody Hotel, Memphis, Tennessee. As I've noted, this is the second big get-together scheduled for 2007, following the Washington, DC gathering in February). It's not just air anymore.
ISCe Satellite Investment Symposium NYC '07 - Oct. 9, 2007; New York, NY; with Delbert D. Smith, senior telecommunications counsel at Jones Day (host of last year's event), and many telecom financial gurus. (Blame Sputnik for all of this.)
SATCON - Oct. 10-11, 2007, Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, New York, NY; lots more satellite industry stuff.
Civil Society and Outer Space Forum 2007 - Oct. 8-9, 2007, Vienna, Austria, organized by the Conference of Non-governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations (CONGO).
40th anniversary of the Outer Space Treaty going into force - Oct. 10, 2007. For better or worse? (Lots more on this to come.)
COMSTAC Meeting - Oct. 11, 2007; FAA Headquarters, Washington, DC
Remembering the Space Age: 50th Anniversary Conference - Oct. 22-23, 2007, NASA History Division and National Air and Space Museum Division of Space History; Washington, DC. (And by the way, NASA's 50th anniversary is one year from today, Oct. 1, 1958. ;)
Third International Symposium for Personal Spaceflight (ISPS 2007) - Oct. 24-25, 2007, Las Cruces, New Mexico. Kicking off the Wirefly X PRIZE CUP '07 and Holloman Air & Space Expo Oct. 26-28, 2007, Alamogordo, New Mexico.
Risk and Exploration II: Earth As A Classroom - Oct. 28-30; Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana; featuring lots of astronauts, space lawyer Art Dula and other interesting folks.
Reach to Space 2007 - Nov. 12-13, 2007 Washington D.C.
Eilene M. Galloway Symposium on Critical Issues in Space Law (agenda to come) - Dec. 7, 2007; hosted by the National Center for Remote Sensing, Air and Space Law and the International Institute of Space Law; Cosmos Club, Washington D.C.
2nd International Conference on the State of Remote Sensing Law (agenda to come) - Jan. 16-18, 2008; hosted by the National Center for Remote Sensing, Air and Space Law; Oxford, Mississippi.
All good stuff for kicking off the second 50 years of the growing-older-by-the-minute space age.
And happy space anniversary, Earth lawyers and everyone ;).
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UPDATE: And happy World Space Week, Oct. 4-10.... ;)
