New venture 'to mine asteroids'

[zippy]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21144769

A new venture is joining the effort to extract mineral resources on asteroids.

The announcement of plans by Deep Space Industries to exploit the rare metals present in the space rocks turns asteroid mining into a two-horse race.

The other venture, Planetary Resources, went public with its proposals last year.

Advocates of asteroid mining hope it could turn into a trillion-dollar business, but some scientists are highly sceptical of the idea.

Deep Space Industries wants to send a fleet of asteroid-prospecting spacecraft out into the Solar System to hunt for resources.

These spacecraft, which the company has dubbed "Fireflies", would use low-cost CubeSat components and benefit from discounted delivery to space by ride-sharing on the launch of larger communications satellites.

The Fireflies would have a mass of about 55 lb (25 kg) and be launched for the first time in 2015 on journeys of two to six months.

The company then wants to launch bigger spacecraft - which it calls "Dragonflies" - for round-trip visits that bring back samples.

These expeditions would take two to four years, depending on the target, and would return 60 to 150 lbs of material from target asteroids.

At some point this is inevitable, but it remains to be seen whether this particular venture will succeed.

Even if it doesnt, its the start of something.

Do we start selling our shares in current resource companies ?

 

[vash87]

I think the next 20 years are going to be very exciting with the advancements in space exploration..

 

[DJ...]

Just wait until NUM realise that they weren't consulted...

 

[ponder]

Just wait until NUM realise that they weren't consulted...

Hopefully they establish a task team to investigate this asteroid mining and send a delegation of their top minds on a fact finding mission to said asteroids...


Kind reminds me off,

Africans must travel to the moon: Uganda president
(AFP) – May 2, 2009

ENTEBBE, Uganda (AFP) — Africans must travel to the moon to investigate what developed nations have been doing in outer space, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said Saturday.

"The Americans have gone to the moon. And the Russians. The Chinese and Indians will go there soon. Africans are the only ones who are stuck here," Museveni said, addressing a meeting of the Uganda Law Society in Entebbe.

"We must also go there and say: 'What are you people doing up here?'."

Museveni urged the assembly of Uganda's top lawyers to support East African integration, arguing that one of the region's goals should be to develop a space programme.

"Uganda alone cannot go to the moon. We are too small. But East Africa united can. That is what East African integration is all about," he said. "Then we can say to the Americans: 'What are you doing here all alone?'."

Museveni has vocally campaigned for a common East African economic and political zone.

Negotiations to establish a tariff free trade zone including Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi and Rwanda have been ongoing for months.

Museveni on Saturday also called for enhanced political integration among the East African nations, suggesting the region would be strengthened by becoming one country.

 

[OrbitalDawn]

Hopefully they establish a task team to investigate this asteroid mining and send a delegation of their top minds on a fact finding mission to said asteroids...


Kind reminds me off,

I'm sure they'll remember to give them knobkierries and spears in case the asteroidians are counter-revolutionary agents.

 

[zippy]

This thread was not meant to morph into a govt/union/african bashing thread.

But this is mybb I guess and you can't really avoid small minded 12 year old bigots, even in the science section.

 

[SoulTax]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21144769



At some point this is inevitable, but it remains to be seen whether this particular venture will succeed.

Even if it doesnt, its the start of something.

Do we start selling our shares in current resource companies ?

Currently I just cannot see how this is going to be profitable. They need much cheaper orbital launch costs and manufacturing costs to be able to mine stuff off of asteroids and sell them back here on earth. Especially if they have to travel quite far.

 

[spiderz]

How difficult can it be to send something to the moon?
They did it in the 70's.
My Cellphone probably has 100x more CPU power than they had available then.

 

[Jehosefat]

CPU power isn't the issue; gravity is. The amount of thrust you need to generate is ridiculous so the only way to do that is to have massive and really expensive rockets.

While I agree with you, in theory it is easy, in practice it is the details that are really difficult and its generally hellishly expensive.

 

[grok]

Currently I just cannot see how this is going to be profitable. They need much cheaper orbital launch costs and manufacturing costs to be able to mine stuff off of asteroids and sell them back here on earth. Especially if they have to travel quite far.

Read the article .. they plan to do just that by using small vehicles, piggy-backing on other launches etc.

 

[zippy]

Its not the distance that is the issue. Its getting into orbit and developing automated machinary that can operate in extreme environments. If you compare the size and complexity of robots sent to Mars over the last few decades you will see there has been major advances in this.

The major cost factor in space travel is in keeping humans alive in that environment.

Mining in western countries is already highly mechanised, and its getting more mechanised every day.

 

[Creag]

I think the next 20 years are going to be very exciting with the advancements in space exploration..

Yup, especially as resources on Terra Frima start to dwindle. Space exploration with the likes of Elon Musk and his peers will be big. With private enterprise getting involved, the skies the limit.

 

[CR34M3]

These expeditions would take two to four years, depending on the target, and would return 60 to 150 lbs of material from target asteroids.

While it sounds like a fun idea, to me it seems like mining asteroids has a problem of scale...

Now while I can't claim to know the mineral content in asteroids, I know the number for the platinum industry. At around 5g (platinum group metals) per tonne, the 150lbs from the asteroid would have a market value of around R120 (after refining). So unless the mineral grade of the asterioids are very high, the volumes required would be quite... large.

I know that prices do fluctuate and that all my assumptions aren't necessarily valid, but this is just so that I can get my head around it. But then again, technological limits are catalysts for innovation, so yes, interesting times ahead.

 

[zippy]

So unless the mineral grade of the asterioids are very high, the volumes required would be quite..

This is the goal of these planned missions. To find out exactly what these asteroids have to offer.

 

[TJ99]

Asteroids are small fry. We need to get to some of those diamond planet$$$. Only problem is getting to the galactic core would take a bit longer than 6 months. Or 6 millennia.

 

[Picard]

This thread was not meant to morph into a govt/union/african bashing thread.

But this is mybb I guess and you can't really avoid small minded 12 year old bigots, even in the science section.

If the president of Uganda says this, I don't think it's us that are small-mind and ignorant.