If you were to take a poll on the street of the next
likely nation to put a man on the Moon, which names do you believe you’d hear?
The United States would be on the list of course, even with cuts to the Space
budget and a neutering of NASA, the US is still the crowd favorite. China would
most likely be a close second, as it is pretty common knowledge at this point that
you can’t speak of leadership in anything in the future without mentioning China.
And those who grew up with memories of the James Bond-era eye patch wearing,
chain-smoking, Capitalism-hating Soviet stereotype would certainly suggest the
Russian Federation. (This author is now missing the 80s) Take into
consideration the group of BRIC nations, those up and coming countries known as
the emerging markets (India, Brazil, etc.), and you could easily name a fourth.
But how many times do you think people would mention the dark horse of the next
century’s Space Race – The Isle Of Man???
A few more than you might think, actually. This small
island has been steadily creating big buzz in the industries of space
exploration and interstellar tourism, and is currently looking like the frontrunner
amongst European nations – even ahead of its neighbor and age-old benefactor the
United Kingdom. Located in the Irish Sea within the British Isles between Great
Britain and Ireland, the Isle of Man encompasses just over 220 square miles (572
square kilometers) and is home to an estimated 80,085 inhabitants, of whom
just over 26,000 live in the island’s capital, Douglas. However, regardless of
its size, The Isle of Man has had a disproportionate amount of success and
impact on the global space industry as a whole. In a recent benchmarking report
published by US research firm Futron Corporation, it is revealed that the Isle of
Man government has played a key role in shaping the island’s niche in the space
industry. “The Isle of Man’s unique
approach to space activity allows it to punch above its weight in terms of
global visibility in the space industry. The Isle has proactively created an
innovative niche as a global provider of financial services and administrative
services that support global space commerce. The maturity of space-related
finance activities in the Isle, and the government’s approach to facilitating
them, are advanced, especially given the relatively short amount of time for
which the Isle of Man has been operating in the space industry.”
Fulton’s
CEO, Joseph Fuller Jr. further elaborated on what he saw as the key elements of
the Isle of Man’s success: "The space industry represents greater $275B (USD) in annual economic activity growing at approximately 9% a year - a rate well above that of the overall economy…their non-traditional strategy for space
focuses on financial and corporate services, providing a fascinating model to
foster hi-tech economic activities. I imagine other nations and jurisdictions
will look to the Isle to replicate its success.” It probably doesn’t hurt that the
Isle of Man offers one of the most business-friendly economic environments
around – there is no capital gains tax, no wealth tax, no stamp tax, no
inheritance tax, and income tax is capped at 20%. And let’s not forget that the
corporate tax is 0%, unless you are a bank…then you are hit with a hefty 10%
corporate tax. That’s certainly a welcoming place for foreign investors.
Foreign
investors are not the only ones making their way to the Isle, as in July of this
year NASA astronauts who crewed the final mission of the space shuttle
Discovery will be on the Isle for 6 days. Coordinated by NASA and ManSat, the
Isle’s government space industry consulting partner, the astronauts led by
American astronaut Nicole Scott will meet with the island’s inhabitants and
space exploration representatives. Considering that this is following the arrival
of research space stations on the island in January, it’s not fully inconceivable
to think that the next man on the Moon might actually be, The Isle of Man.
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