Two Teams are Assessing Asteroid Mining’s Economic Viability
Two groups of economists have conducted economic evaluations of asteroid mining. One of these groups comprises individuals from the University of Tor Rome Vergata, the University of Maryland, and Middlebury College. They have considered asteroid mining as a natural progression in the financialization of space exploration.
The second team, consisting of three members from the Colorado School of Mines and one from the International Monetary Fund, concentrated on the obstacles that need to be overcome for the industry to exploit the currently freely accessible resources on asteroids. Both teams have published their findings in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Precious Gems and High-Demand Earth Metals
Previous research has indicated the presence of valuable materials on asteroids, including diamonds and potentially other gemstones. However, the most valuable resources are more likely to be scarce Earth metals like cobalt, nickel, and platinum, which have seen an increase in demand due to their use in modern technology products such as batteries, solar panels, and windmill components.
Supply Vulnerability and Alternative Mining Methods
In fact, as these metals are primarily sourced from a limited number of countries, their supply is vulnerable to disruption, leading to increased costs. Some companies are considering deep-sea mining as an alternative, but this method raises ecological concerns, sea pollution, and the high expenses associated with deep-sea operations.
Therefore, the two groups in this study are exploring the potential costs associated with asteroid mining and whether they could be low enough to justify the investment.
Economic Spillover from Space Exploration
In the first paper, Corrado et al. observe that historical advances in space exploration have often led to economic spillover, benefiting companies that capitalized on space-related activities. They anticipate a similar trend in future space endeavors, including asteroid mining.
Conversely, the second paper by Fleming et al. focuses on metal mining from asteroids, analyzing costs across all stages, from research and development to rocket design and construction, as well as the hardware (including robots) required for extracting metals from asteroids and returning them to Earth.
Their calculations suggest that in the next 30 to 40 years, asteroid mining could not only be profitable but could also become the primary method of extracting precious metals, as prices rise and the cost of space operations decreases.
Read the original article on: PHYS ORG
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