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Asteroid mining is the hypothetical extraction of materials from asteroids and other minor planets, including near-Earth objects. [1] Notable asteroid mining challenges include the high cost of spaceflight, unreliable identification of asteroids which are suitable for mining, and the challenges of extracting usable material in a space environment.
A specific argument for asteroid colonization is the potential economic gain from asteroid mining. Asteroids contain a significant amount of valuable materials, including rare minerals and precious metals , which can be mined and transported back to Earth to be sold.
Asteroid capture is an orbital insertion of an asteroid around a larger planetary body. When asteroids, small rocky bodies in space, are captured, they become natural satellites , [ 1 ] [ failed verification – see discussion ] specifically either an irregular moon if permanently captured, or a temporary satellite .
Asteroids are ripe for mining. Some contain gold or platinum. Others could help make rocket fuel. When they're mini-moons, that's a prime opportunity.
An asteroid between 130 and 300 feet wide has a slight chance of hitting Earth in 2032 — but the precise odds have been a moving target since the space rock was first detected nearly two months ago.
A newly discovered asteroid named 2024 YR4 now has a 2.2% chance of affecting Earth in 2032 after recent observations.
Optical mining is the term NASA uses to describe extracting materials from asteroids. NASA believes by using propellant derived from asteroids for exploration to the moon, Mars, and beyond will save $100 billion. If funding and technology come sooner than estimated, asteroid mining might be possible within a decade. [62]
Bennu is both an old and a new asteroid. Like all of the millions of other objects in the asteroid belt, it formed 4.5 billion years ago when our solar system was just accreting. But its loose ...