{"id":1141163,"date":"2019-09-30T12:28:47","date_gmt":"2019-09-30T17:28:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/?p=1003223"},"modified":"2019-09-30T12:28:47","modified_gmt":"2019-09-30T17:28:47","slug":"water-from-near-earth-asteroids-could-fuel-space-mining","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/?p=1141163","title":{"rendered":"Water from near-Earth asteroids could fuel space mining"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Scientists planning to start&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/mining-moon-ready-lift-off-2025\/\" >mining the moon&nbsp;as early as 2025<\/a> may soon shift their attention to other celestial bodies as <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/full\/10.1029\/2018JE005584\" >a new study suggests<\/a> that there are about 1,000 asteroids closer to our planet than the lunar surface and which contain large amounts of the most precious resource: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/asteroid-miners-go-after-most-precious-resource-water-64544\/3321\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">water<\/a>. <\/p>\n<div class='d-flex justify-content-center'>\n<div id='div-gpt-ad-1561499308230-0'><script>googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1561499308230-0');});<\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>While most of those space rocks are only a few feet in size,<br \/>\nat least 25 of them are large enough to be able to serve as a stand-alone water<br \/>\nreservoir. Together, the potential of these \u201chydrated\u201d asteroids is unparalleled<br \/>\nas they should be enough to fill nearly 320,000 Olympics-size swimming pools \u2014<br \/>\nsignificantly more than the amount of water locked up at the lunar poles, according<br \/>\nto the study.<\/p>\n<p>If there was a way to successfully establish refueling stations on these orbiting asteroids, says asteroid researcher and lead author of the paper, Andrew Rivkin, human space exploration could unlock a \u201clevel-up\u201d moment. There would be no need to send fuel from Earth anymore, he says.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote alignright\">\n<blockquote>\n<p>Asteroids orbiting Earth have enough water to fill up 320,000 Olympics-size swimming pools. This is significantly more than the amount of water detected on the moon&#8217;s poles.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s easier to bring fuel from asteroids to geosynchronous orbit than from the surface of the Earth,&#8221; Rivkin says. &#8220;If such a supply line could be established, it could make&nbsp;asteroid mining&nbsp;very profitable.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>So far there are at least two asteroid mining companies \u2014 <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/asteroid-miners-explain-just-how-they-are-going-to-do-it-27631\/\" >Planetary Resources<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/asteroid-miner-will-handle-treaty-issues-by-taking-a-page-from-the-deep-sea-miners-82448\/\" >Deep Space Industries<\/a>&nbsp;\u2014 and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/nasa-gets-serious-about-asteroid-mining-in-new-mission-80131\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)<\/a> looking into the feasibility of the extraterrestrial endeavour.<\/p>\n<p>In 2015, former US President Barack Obama&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/obama-boosts-asteroid-mining-signs-law-granting-rights-to-own-space-riches\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">signed a law that grants US citizens rights to own resources<\/a>&nbsp;mined<br \/>\nin space. The ground-breaking rule was touted as a major boost to asteroid<br \/>\nmining because it encourages the commercial exploration and utilization&nbsp;of<br \/>\nresources from asteroids obtained by US firms.<\/p>\n<p>Shortly after,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/luxembourgs-space-agency-ready-lift-off\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Luxembourg launched an official initiative<\/a>&nbsp;to promote<br \/>\nthe mining of asteroids for minerals. The tiny European country, which has been<br \/>\nstudying possible involvement in the sector since 2013, aims to become Europe\u2019s<br \/>\ncentre for space mining.<\/p>\n<p>Canada is also eying the moon. Last year, Northern<br \/>\nOntario-based&nbsp;Deltion Innovations partnered with Moon Express, the first<br \/>\nAmerican private space exploration firm to have been&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/us-government-expected-to-green-light-first-private-moon-mission\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">granted government permission<\/a>&nbsp;to travel beyond Earth\u2019s<br \/>\norbit, on future opportunities in outer space.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the space ventures in the works include&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/planetary-resources-now-has-21-million-to-help-miners-find-resources-on-earth\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">plans to mine asteroids<\/a>, track space debris, build<br \/>\nthe&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/about-1000-shortlisted-for-one-way-trip-to-mars-75821\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">first human settlement in Mars<\/a>, and billionaire Elon Musk\u2019s<br \/>\nown plan for an unmanned mission to the red planet.<\/p>\n<p>Geologists as well as emerging companies, such as&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/planetary-resources-step-closer-mining-asteroids-spacecraft-launch\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">US-based Planetary Resources<\/a>, a firm pioneering the space<br \/>\nmining industry, believe asteroids are packed with iron ore, nickel and<br \/>\nprecious metals at much higher concentrations than those found on Earth, making<br \/>\nup a market valued&nbsp;in the trillions of dollars.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New study suggests that there are about 1,000 water-rich asteroids closer to our planet than the moon.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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