On this day, December the 19th, in the year of 1966, the Outer Space Treaty, a treaty which limits nations working in space to only peaceful purposes, was endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly.

As the United States and the Soviet Union partook in the Space Race as a part of the Cold War, fears of whether the two superpowers would use space for militaristic purposes grew. To quell these fears, the two nations submitted joint treaties on the utilization of space.

The treaty included such regulation as no weapons of mass destruction in space and that other nations can’t claim land on other celestial bodies.

The Outer Space Treaty would be ratified and go into effect in the following year (Arms Control Association) (Miller Center) (Britannica).

To read more daily facts and tidbits and about tensions between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R., see the Barron Perspectives “On this Day Archives” webpage and such articles as “On This Day – October 30th (Tsar Bomba)” and “(End of Cold War) On This Day – December 3rd”.