The Next Gold Rush? / Infinite potential in Mining Asteroids from Space

So is this why Kid rocketman over at DPR loves to launch? It may explain Musk's infatuation with space. What about those aliens. this is a good read as if the USA mined some asteroids they could negate the national debt.

Infinite potential in mining asteroids from space

Asteroids carry immense amounts of minerals that dwarf the Earth’s supply. Asteroid 16 Psyche hosts precious metals that are predicted to be worth quintillions of dollars. Most of this is gold. Finding a way to mine these space-ores would revolutionize human industry. If the extraction process became simple enough, such a tight concentration of resources could make terrestrial mining obsolete. 16 Psyche is almost 230 million miles from Earth, but NASA had already landed probes on asteroids as far as 196 million miles away by the year 2001. Fortunately, moving things in space is quite cheap thanks to its essential lack of friction. Nearby asteroids could be eased into orbit by using the gravity of the Earth or the Moon to pull them closer. Then, they could be mined.

a reply to: Waterglass

I wonder what the best way of doing that will be?

We keep hearing that there's too much junk in orbit around the earth already.

Can we get stuff to orbit the moon?

Or park them on the moon?

NASA can't even get past low earth orbit anymore, good luck wrangling a asteroid and bringing it down here to mine. I guess you could crash it into the moon, it is afterall just a hollow metal sphere with some dust stuck to it from electrostatics.

I wonder if we parked a large asteroid in earth orbit if it would knock some of the space junk into the atmosphere to burn up? Kinda like a game of billiards.

Somebody needs to get busy developing electric rockets. Can't have all those greenhouse gases ruining our climate.

We need to have a law saying no more chemical rockets or jets by 2035. If the people have to suffer with crappy electric cars, then the military can make do with electric tanks, jets, and missiles.

It used to be solid aluminum metal was more 'rare' and valuable than gold, but then processing technology improved and it became what it is: the most abundant metal on earth. Prices plummeted. In these days a trillion dollar bailout would have been distributed, or some crap, to the losers in that equation.

a reply to: Waterglass

When this actually becomes a thing in the future, the value of the precious metal will drop substantially imo.

The reason it has value is because there's a finite amount of it on the planet. As soon as you start bringing more of it to the planet from outside, it dilutes the total amount in existence.

a reply to: Thrumbo

The bright side to gold being devalued is that will have no effect on the US Dollar.

a reply to: juulzverne

Not heard of DART, then?

James Webb telescope?

Mars rovers?

originally posted by: godsovein
It used to be solid aluminum metal was more 'rare' and valuable than gold, but then processing technology improved and it became what it is: the most abundant metal on earth. Prices plummeted. In these days a trillion dollar bailout would have been distributed, or some crap, to the losers in that equation.

The cap on the Washington Monument is Aluminium because it was more valuable than gold. In 200 years, I predicted there will be millions of people living on the moon, Mars, and the moons of the gas giants. Time will tell.

originally posted by: juulzverne
NASA can't even get past low earth orbit anymore, good luck wrangling a asteroid and bringing it down here to mine. I guess you could crash it into the moon, it is afterall just a hollow metal sphere with some dust stuck to it from electrostatics.

Cooorrrrr thats a depressing outlook on everything, a prison forever controlled by lizards

damn life sucks

originally posted by: Oldcarpy2
a reply to: juulzverne

Not heard of DART, then?

James Webb telescope?

Mars rovers?

James Webb telescope is just remixed versions of Hubble images, its a scam so they can divert money to fund black book projects.

a reply to: juulzverne

No, it really isn't.

You're not a Flat Earther, are you?

originally posted by: Oldcarpy2
a reply to: juulzverne

No, it really isn't.

You're not a Flat Earther, are you?

you mean like is it level? in places, bumpy in others.

a reply to: juulzverne

You tell me?

originally posted by: TritonTaranis


Cooorrrrr thats a depressing outlook on everything, a prison forever controlled by lizards

damn life sucks

you are probably thinking of reptiles. not all reptiles are lizards.

...

a reply to: juulzverne

What lizards are not reptiles?

originally posted by: Oldcarpy2
a reply to: juulzverne

What lizards are not reptiles?

a reply to: Mandroid7

Very good!