United States v. One Lucite Ball Containing Lunar Material (One Moon Rock)The purchase and ownership of moon rocks and moon dust is a sensitive issue for NASA. By law, individuals cannot own moon samples. Even Apollo astronauts, who were gifted plaques of moon samples, can’t display them in their homes. The government requires the astronauts to display them in a public school or museum. Moon dust is rare and collectors want this precious commodity. Therefore, they are eager to purchase samples on the black market. The Nixon administration divided 270 tiny rocks between foreign countries as gifts. But these moon samples are unaccounted for as prime ministers and leaders passed away and then given to family members who, in turn, sold the rocks on the black market. “I would not be surprised if half of those 135 moon rocks have been stolen, or lost, or are now in a position where they could be stolen.” —Joseph Gutheinz, retired NASA investigator.You might wonder how it’s possible to sue a moon rock… Well, the government can sue any unlawfully possessed item. Any item involved in illegal activity (contraband) can be sued under a forfeiture statute rather than suing the person who owned it so that it can be returned to the proper owner. In this case, the U.S. government owned the moon rock who gave it to the Honduras government. It was seized and given back to Honduras.
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United States v. One Lucite Ball Containing Lunar Material (One Moon Rock)

The purchase and ownership of moon rocks and moon dust is a sensitive issue for NASA. By law, individuals cannot own moon samples. Even Apollo astronauts, who were gifted plaques of moon samples, can’t display them in their homes. The government requires the astronauts to display them in a public school or museum.

Moon dust is rare and collectors want this precious commodity. Therefore, they are eager to purchase samples on the black market. The Nixon administration divided 270 tiny rocks between foreign countries as gifts. But these moon samples are unaccounted for as prime ministers and leaders passed away and then given to family members who, in turn, sold the rocks on the black market.

“I would not be surprised if half of those 135 moon rocks have been stolen, or lost, or are now in a position where they could be stolen.” —Joseph Gutheinz, retired NASA investigator.

You might wonder how it’s possible to sue a moon rock… Well, the government can sue any unlawfully possessed item. Any item involved in illegal activity (contraband) can be sued under a forfeiture statute rather than suing the person who owned it so that it can be returned to the proper owner. In this case, the U.S. government owned the moon rock who gave it to the Honduras government. It was seized and given back to Honduras.

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