Pinzon 1
Daniel Pinzon
Harlynn Ramsey
WRIT 340
4 December 2013
Asteroid Mining: The New Gold Rush
Abstract:
Asteroids killed the dinosaurs, but they may become humanity’s biggest
industry. Asteroids are made up of key resources needed for deep space exploration,
but more importantly they are composed of the elements being rapidly used up in
modern industry. The potential for access to a near-infinite supply of resources is
within reach. Near-Earth Asteroids are waiting to be utilized, and have the potential
to create a trillion-dollar industry. Asteroid mining may sound like science fiction,
but its just science.
Keywords:
Asteroid mining, mining, space exploration
Multimedia Suggestions:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/neo/index.cfm
Biography:
Daniel Pinzon is a senior studying mechanical engineering at USC. He is the
structures team leader in a student project developing a lunar lander at USC.
Introduction
Near-Earth Asteroids contain an abundant supply of elements and minerals
that are quickly being depleted by modern technological industries. Mining these
near-Earth asteroids can provide an alternative to the current destructive terrestrial
Pinzon 2
excavation. The theory has been around for decades, but the technology has been
slow to develop to make the theory become a reality. It is up to scientists and
engineers to create the tools to make this idea possible and jump-start the space
industry. The ability to acquire building material and rocket fuel out side the Earth
is essential to the exploration of deep space.
Why Mine Asteroids?
Space miners set their eyes on asteroids for two things, water and metals.
According to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, there are over 10,000 near-Earth
objects as of June 2013 [1]. A Near-Earth object is an object with a perihelion —
point in orbit where object is closest to the Sun — distance, of less than 1.3
Astronomical Units (194,477,232 kilometers) [2]. The first missions in the space
asteroid mining industry will focus on these near-Earth asteroids. Experience needs
to be built near Earth’s orbit before venturing out to the asteroid belt in search of
bigger riches. One of the ways asteroids are classified is by their composition. For
asteroid miners, information about the contents of an asteroid is very important.
The near-Earth asteroids are classified into three categories, C-type, Stype, and M-type. C-type asteroids are asteroids containing carbonaceous
materials such as carbon, hydrated materials, and organic chemicals; they
make up about 75% of the NEOs. S-type asteroids are stony type of
asteroids containing mostly iron and magnesium ores, and high levels of
distinguishable minerals; they make up about 17% of the NEOs . M-type
asteroids are asteroids composed of pure nickel-iron; they make up the
remaining 8% with a small portion of rare asteroid types. [2]
Pinzon 3
The M-type asteroids are of interest because of their platinum-group metals
(PGMs). Platinum-group metals are valuable and useful metals, they are used in
electronics and as a catalyst in chemical reactions; yet they are scarce on Earth. 80%
of platinum-group metals come from just 3 mines in Africa, and platinum sources
are expected to deplete in 20 to 30 years [3]. Due to platinum’s scarcity the current
market price of platinum is about $1600 an ounce. This means small metallic
asteroid about 200 meters across could be worth $30 billion dollars [4]. Other
metals can also be used directly in space. Iron and aluminum ore can be used for
construction or industrial processes in space. Low gravity can enable amazing
things to be done in terms of moving large objects and construction in space.
Structures can be built and moved without high regard for the buckling or bending
caused by gravity. Space stations can use extraterrestrial metals for maintenance or
upgrades without having to pay for the transport from Earth.
The C-type asteroids can be processed for water. Apart from its much-needed
life sustaining capabilities in space, water has the potential to be used as radiation
shielding in space stations, or in manufacturing processes. When broken down,
hydrogen can recharge power cells, or be used as rocket fuel [5]. Having water
accessible outside of Earth’s gravity can significantly reduce the cost of space travel
and space exploration. A gallon of water weighs about 8.33 pounds and can cost tens
of thousands of dollars to launch out of Earth’s gravity, which means a single waterrich asteroid 500 meters across would produce $5 trillion worth of usable water in
space [5]. Sustainability of space travelers could be tackled using C-type asteroids as
fuel depots during deep space travel.
Pinzon 4
Yet another incentive to pursue the idea of asteroid mining is that over 1500
asteroids are as easy to reach as the moon, and several dozen asteroids require less
energy than is required to put a television satellite into geostationary orbit [6]. Once
the asteroids are targeted for their resources, the mission to reach these asteroids
will be very simple. Missions to reach near-Earth asteroids will be low risk in
comparison to previous space missions.
How to Find Asteroids
Before any resource extraction is started, space miners will need to target the
most valuable asteroids to mine. Small fleets of low cost commercial robotic
spacecraft will prospect for suitable asteroids.
The first scouting stage will consist of small telescopes located in low earth
orbit that will gather spectral data to determine near-earth asteroids’ rough
composition and market value. The second scouting state will consist of
swarms of low-cost robotic spacecraft that will explore asteroids to specify
their shape, surface and sub-surface composition, rotation, and accessibility
of resources (see fig. 1) [4].
A process of elimination approach to scouting will ensure that the highest value
asteroids are targeted for material extraction. This will increase the profit margin
for such missions.
Pinzon 5
Figure 1: Second stage prospecting spacecraft exploring an asteroid [6]
A second stage prospecting spacecraft is needed because the first set of spacecraft
will not be able to provide information about the internal composition of asteroids.
This is a more expensive process that requires specific tools.
The second stage spacecraft will employ laser-induced breakdown
spectroscopy (LIBS) instrumentation to analyze the metal and water content
in an asteroid. The LIBS uses lasers to vaporize surface materials so sensors
can analyze the light emitted by the resulting plasma to identity the elements
that make up an asteroid (see fig. 2) [5].
Pinzon 6
Figure 2: LIBS method used to determine asteroid composition
Source: Original
This LIBS method is currently being used in NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory. After
acquiring data based on an asteroid’s composition the spacecraft would then send
the analyzed results back to a control center on Earth, and would place a beacon on
the asteroid if it proves to be of value. The beacon is used by mining spacecraft to
locate targeted asteroids [5,6].
Mining Methods
There are several methods to extract an asteroid’s material. The method
employed depends on the asteroid’s composition, and the final end use of the
asteroid’s material. A targeted asteroid can be brought to near-Earth orbit; it can be
placed around Earth’s, the moon’s, or the ISS’s orbit. Another option is to extract
needed material on site and either bring the processed materials back to Earth or
use the material in-situ [4]. If the asteroid’s concentration of metal is high, it makes
sense to bring back the whole asteroid in a bag and tow spacecraft since the
majority of the asteroid can be used. If the extracted material is to be used in a space
Pinzon 7
station or brought back to Earth, and the asteroid is not of a solid composition, the
targeted asteroid would be mined and the raw material would be towed to nearEarth orbit. This method will reduce the cost of transport by reducing unnecessary
material weight, but will require mining equipment to be transported to the
asteroid.
Innovation is needed in the material extraction techniques. Mining spacecraft
won’t be able to land on target asteroids due to their lack of gravity. Spacecraft will
have to dock to the asteroids. A simple hook won’t work because the surface
material the hook grabs might fly away. An alternative method is to deploy drills
that secure the craft to the surface [5]. If the asteroid is big, low-cost mining robots
can crisscross an asteroid to extract its resources and bring them back to a larger
craft [7]. M-type asteroids will small concentrations of metal will be mined with
magnetic rakes coming off mining craft [4]. Magnets are placed on each prong of a
rake like extension and are used to comb the loose regolith on the surface off the
asteroid. The magnet collects the metal grains as the prongs of the rake dig into the
sub-surface. C-Type asteroids will be processed with mining robots that can collect
water-laden soil and heat it in ovens to release the water vapor, which can be
collected, condensed to water, and stored in a tank [5].
Technology Needed
In order to tackle this endeavor, scientists and engineers need to work
together to develop the tools necessary to perform autonomous mining operations.
The distance between the Earth and the asteroids will delay communication
between craft and control center, so the asteroid mining robots will have to be
Pinzon 8
autonomous with limited high-level human input commands. Programmers will be
essential to ensure that robots can make important decisions and perform mining
tasks by themselves. New low gravitational processing and manufacturing
techniques will have to be developed. Laser synthesis 3D printing will have to be
able to be implemented in microgravity. This will enable faster manufacturing
methods to be used in space to fix or upgrade spacecraft, satellites, and space
stations. The technology to travel to, and land on an asteroid is available, but there
needs to be a faster and cheaper process to do this. Unimaginable technology will be
developed specifically for the asteroid mining industry.
Conclusion
The idea of mining asteroid seems far-fetched, but there are companies
already working on this specific goal. Once operations begin a new industry will
begin. More companies will follow through, and in a couple decades terrestrial
mining will be minimal. The profit margin terrestrial mining can yield does not
compare to the profit produced mining asteroids. An increase in abundance of rare
metal resources could also enable new, unforeseen applications that exploit the
properties of rare metals beyond the current state of practice. New technologies will
develop, and the abundance of the rare metals will allow for better electronic
mining robots. “Using the resources of space — to explore space — will enable
large-scale exploration of the solar system” [6]. Reducing the cost of space travel is a
crucial step to begin the exploration of deep space, and asteroid mining is the first
step to fuel the growing space industry.
Pinzon 9
References:
1. Agle, DC. “Ten Thousandth Near-Earth Object Unearthed in Space”
(jpl.nasa.gov), [online] June 24th, 2013
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-207 (Accessed: 15
November 2013)
2. Nelson M.L, Britt D.T., Lebofsky L.A., Review of Asteroid Compositions,
Resources of Near-Earth Space, University of Arizona Press, Arizona, 1993
3. McCrae, Michael Allan, “Infographic: Why asteroid mining is necessary”
(mining.com),[online] 9th December 2012
http://www.mining.com/infographic-why-asteroid-mining-is-necessary88718/ (Accessed: 15 November 2013)
4. Harris, Stephen. “Your questions answered: asteroid mining”
(theEngineer.co.uk), [online] 8th April 2013
http://www.theengineer.co.uk/aerospace/in-depth/your-questionsanswered-asteroid-mining/1015966.article (Accessed: 15 November 2013)
5. Belfiore, Michael. “How to Mine an Asteroid” (popularmechanics.com),
[online] 16th August 2012
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/space/news/how-to-mine-anasteroid-11644811 (Accessed: 15 November 2013)
6. Planetary Resources — The Asteroid Mining Company, [online] 2013
http://www.planetaryresources.com (Accessed: 15 November 2013)
7. Tate, Karl. “How Asteroid Mining Could Work (Infographic)” (space.com),
[online] 22nd January 2013. http://www.space.com/15391-asteroid-miningspace-planetary-resources-infographic.html (Accessed: 15 November 2013)