Who owns the moon? It's 'complicated,' say experts: CNN

By Lara Farrar

For CNN

LONDON, England (CNN) -- One of Francis Williams' favorite stories to tell is about the time he was pulled over for speeding.

As countries and companies plan to go to the moon, a debate heats up on lunar property rights.

Williams, who had been in London on business, was driving home through the English countryside when a police officer stopped him and wanted to know two things: Was Williams aware of how fast he was driving? And, what was his profession?

It turned out the response to the second question would help Williams resolve the first: "I said, 'I sell land on the moon,'" said Williams. "And [the police officer] said, 'Do you know, my wife has bought some of that.'"

The answer to the first question was subsequently forgotten.

Williams, who describes himself as the "Lunar Ambassador to the United Kingdom," is the owner of MoonEstates. He claims to have sold around 300,000 acres of moon land since he and his wife, Sue, founded the Cornwall-based company eight years ago. One-acre plots of lunar turf go for about $40.

As proof of purchase, new property owners receive a silver tin containing a personalized "Lunar Deed" and a moon map with a tiny black X marking their tract's approximate location. Most of the land Williams sells is in the northwest, in an area known as Oceanus Procellarum, or Ocean of Storms -- a desolate lava plain formed by volcanoes billions of years ago. "I know the Japanese are [selling] further east," he said.

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