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Astronaut Chris Hadfield working with King Charles on 91ƵAstra Carta91Ƶ

Space sustainability plan aims to guide human activity in off-planet places
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Chris Hadfield says he91Ƶs been working with King Charles on a space sustainability plan called the Astra Carta. Hadfield attends the Canada91Ƶs Walk of Fame event in Toronto on Saturday, November 23, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

Chris Hadfield says he91Ƶs been working with King Charles on a space sustainability plan dubbed the Astra Carta.

The Astra Carta will explore how humans can use space and settle the moon in a different way than they have settled on Earth, the Canadian astronaut said Tuesday.

91ƵWe have a clean slate with the moon,91Ƶ he told The Canadian Press on the sidelines of the Super Session, a Toronto conference held by the Creative Destruction Lab, a non-profit helping science and tech firms.

91ƵThere91Ƶs no life on the moon, so we91Ƶre not disrupting an ecology.91Ƶ

Hadfield has been working on the initiative since last summer, when the British monarch, who has long been outspoken on environmental issues, reached out to him for help. They plan to release a version of the Astra Carta on June 28 in London.

Hadfield hopes the Astra Carta will evolve into a document that will engage many decision makers across the globe and guide some of the fundamental patterns around human and legal behaviour in new territories like space.

Canadians should think of some of the issues it will raise as if we have just discovered an untapped continent, he said.

91ƵWhat would we do with it? Who would own it? Whose laws? Who can drill and who can take advantage of the short-term and long-term resources that exist there,91Ƶ he questioned.

91ƵAnd how are we going to self-govern? If you kill somebody on the moon, whose court are you appearing in?91Ƶ

These questions all make space a 91Ƶnew opportunity,91Ƶ he said.

91ƵHow we settle the moon is how we91Ƶre going to settle every place we go after.91Ƶ

The Astra Carta name is a nod to the Magna Carta, a document dating back to 1215, which guaranteed English political liberties and lay the foundations for modern democracy and freedoms.

When it was first drafted, Hadfield said it was rejected by the public and eventually rewritten. He expects the Astra Carta to evolve as well and to draw interest from policymakers.

He said he was editing a final draft of it last night and has been helping the king and his staff write it.

It isn91Ƶt Hadfield91Ƶs first brush with royalty.

91ƵI live a bizarre life,91Ƶ he said. 91ƵSeveral years ago, when Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were still alive, they invited us for a sleepover at Windsor Castle, and at first we were like, who sent us this email? Come on. It can91Ƶt be real.91Ƶ

Hadfield and his wife headed for the English castle, where he said they got to know the late monarch and prince 91Ƶa little bit.91Ƶ

91ƵIt got close to dinner time and the dogs were milling around because they were like, 91ƵHey mom, is it dinner time yet?91Ƶ and the queen91Ƶs going not yet,91Ƶ Hadfield said.

91ƵPrince Philip slips some food under the table.91Ƶ

He91Ƶs since met the Royal Family several times and said it91Ƶs always 91Ƶlovely91Ƶ to spend time with them and see how they try to be a good influence.

91ƵBut I don91Ƶt kid myself. It91Ƶs a huge privilege and a rare opportunity and fun.91Ƶ

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