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Asteroid mining
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Asteroid mining
Asteroid mining is the hypothetical extraction of materials from asteroids and other minor planets, including near-Earth objects.
Asteroid sample return research missions, such as Hayabusa, Hayabusa2, OSIRIS-REx, and Tianwen-2, illustrate the challenges of collecting ore from space using current technology. As of 2024, around 127 grams of asteroid material have been successfully brought to Earth from space. Asteroid research missions are complex endeavors and yield a tiny amount of material (less than 100 milligrams Hayabusa, 5.4 grams Hayabusa2, ~121.6 grams OSIRIS-REx, Tianwen-2 (in progress)) relative to the size and expense of these projects ($300 million Hayabusa, $800 million Hayabusa2, $1.16 billion OSIRIS-REx, $70 million Tianwen-2).
Notable asteroid mining challenges include the high cost of spaceflight, unreliable identification of asteroids that are suitable for mining, and the challenges of extracting usable material in a space environment.[citation needed]
Before 1970, asteroid mining existed largely within the realm of science fiction. Publications such as Worlds of If, Scavengers in Space, and Miners in the Sky told stories about the conceived dangers, motives, and experiences of mining asteroids. At the same time, many researchers in academia speculated about the profits that could be gained from asteroid mining, but they lacked the technology to seriously pursue the idea.
In 1969, the Apollo 11 Moon Landing spurred a wave of scientific interest in human space activity far beyond the Earth's orbit. As the decade continued, increasing academic interest surrounded the topic of asteroid mining. A sizeable portion of serious academic consideration was aimed at mining asteroids located closer to Earth than the main asteroid belt. In particular, the asteroid groups Apollo and Amor were considered. These groups were chosen not only because of their proximity to Earth but also because many at the time thought they were rich in raw materials that could be refined.
Despite the wave of interest, many in the space science community were aware of how little was known about asteroids and encouraged a more gradual and systematic approach to asteroid mining.
Academic interest in asteroid mining continued into the 1980s. The idea of targeting the Apollo and Amor asteroid groups still had some popularity. However, by the late 1980s, the interest in the Apollo and Amor asteroid groups was being replaced with interest in the moons of Mars, Phobos and Deimos.
Governmental organizations and space agencies, such as NASA, begin to formulate ideas of how to process materials in space and what to do with the materials that are hypothetically gathered from space.
Hub AI
Asteroid mining AI simulator
(@Asteroid mining_simulator)
Asteroid mining
Asteroid mining is the hypothetical extraction of materials from asteroids and other minor planets, including near-Earth objects.
Asteroid sample return research missions, such as Hayabusa, Hayabusa2, OSIRIS-REx, and Tianwen-2, illustrate the challenges of collecting ore from space using current technology. As of 2024, around 127 grams of asteroid material have been successfully brought to Earth from space. Asteroid research missions are complex endeavors and yield a tiny amount of material (less than 100 milligrams Hayabusa, 5.4 grams Hayabusa2, ~121.6 grams OSIRIS-REx, Tianwen-2 (in progress)) relative to the size and expense of these projects ($300 million Hayabusa, $800 million Hayabusa2, $1.16 billion OSIRIS-REx, $70 million Tianwen-2).
Notable asteroid mining challenges include the high cost of spaceflight, unreliable identification of asteroids that are suitable for mining, and the challenges of extracting usable material in a space environment.[citation needed]
Before 1970, asteroid mining existed largely within the realm of science fiction. Publications such as Worlds of If, Scavengers in Space, and Miners in the Sky told stories about the conceived dangers, motives, and experiences of mining asteroids. At the same time, many researchers in academia speculated about the profits that could be gained from asteroid mining, but they lacked the technology to seriously pursue the idea.
In 1969, the Apollo 11 Moon Landing spurred a wave of scientific interest in human space activity far beyond the Earth's orbit. As the decade continued, increasing academic interest surrounded the topic of asteroid mining. A sizeable portion of serious academic consideration was aimed at mining asteroids located closer to Earth than the main asteroid belt. In particular, the asteroid groups Apollo and Amor were considered. These groups were chosen not only because of their proximity to Earth but also because many at the time thought they were rich in raw materials that could be refined.
Despite the wave of interest, many in the space science community were aware of how little was known about asteroids and encouraged a more gradual and systematic approach to asteroid mining.
Academic interest in asteroid mining continued into the 1980s. The idea of targeting the Apollo and Amor asteroid groups still had some popularity. However, by the late 1980s, the interest in the Apollo and Amor asteroid groups was being replaced with interest in the moons of Mars, Phobos and Deimos.
Governmental organizations and space agencies, such as NASA, begin to formulate ideas of how to process materials in space and what to do with the materials that are hypothetically gathered from space.
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