A
new era of space exploration began in
January 2018, with relatively little
fanfare. A tiny satellite – Arkyd-6 – was lofted
into orbit on board an Indian rocket.
Designed and built by US outfit Planetary
Resources, it’s an asteroid scout tasked
with searching out potentially mineable
space rocks.
The thing about space exploration is that it’s
a constant fight against the relentless
downwards tug of Earth’s gravity. Taking
everything you need with you from the outset
means having to outrun our planet’s pull, and
that’s super-expensive. It costs thousands of
dollars to launch a single kilogram into orbit,
even with the recent advances in rocket
technology by companies like Elon Musk’s
SpaceX. Far better to launch light, harvesting
what you need from space. And there are few
places more enticing than asteroids.As leftover building blocks from the formation
of our solar system, asteroids are rich in
precious commodities such as platinum,
tungsten and iron. The temptation they offer
has triggered the cosmic equivalent of the
famous California Gold Rush of the mid-
1800s. In 2017, Luxembourg became the first
European country to pass a law that allows
asteroid mining companies in the country to
keep what they find in space. Meanwhile in
the UK, Scottish aerospace company
Asteroid Mining Corporation is currently
trying to raise R43 million to build satellites
capable of identifying platinum on near-Earth
asteroids. In coming years, companies could
send proof-of-concept probes to explore
some of the 17,000 asteroids deemed close
enough to reach economically, with
estimates suggesting that an asteroid would
have to contain commodities worth inexcess of R14.2 billion to make the daring
trip worth it. The potential rewards are huge:
some commentators suggest asteroid
mining could produce the world’s first
trillionaire.
For now, though, asteroids offer something
even more vital for future spacefarers: ice.
Frozen water is the space equivalent of gold.
Melt it and you have water to drink and wash
with. But that’s only scratching the surface of
ice’s potential: one look at its famous
chemical structure, H 2 O, tells you it’s made of
both hydrogen and oxygen. You can harvest
breathable air from ice, as well as using the
hydrogen for fuel. It means that asteroids
could become the cosmic petrol stations of
the future: dock, fill up and continue your
journey. Mars, with its abundant ice in
glaciers and polar caps, could also be a
valuable pit stop.HARVESTING RESOURCES
Asteroids will be plundered for materials and fuel
“THE POTENTIAL REWARDS
ARE HUGE: SOME
COMMENTATORS SUGGEST
ASTEROID MINING COULD
PRODUCE THE WORLD’S
FIRST TRILLIONAIRE.”
Space