14 DAY TRIAL // Researchers at the Harvard University have determined in a new study published on the preprint server arXiv that the number of near-Earth objects (NEO) that could potentially be used for asteroid mining efforts is a lot smaller than previous investigations have suggested.
According to some analysts, the asteroid mining industry may potentially be worth several trillion dollars over the next few years. However, its success hinges on finding space rocks that can provide a wealth of resources that would sell well here on Earth, such as platinum.
Even though the Harvard study was published only recently, companies that have a stake in this type of mining initiatives have already launched a counterattack, seeking to undermine the academic discoveries. This attack is led by Planetary Resources and Deep Space Industries.
Both companies are currently actively pursuing NEO identification efforts that would reveal the most lucrative space rocks out there. What the Harvard paper demonstrates is that the number of potentially-useful objects of this type around Earth may be smaller than first estimated.
After analyzing commercial mining operations criteria, the university team was able to discover just 10 asteroids that appear to fit the bill. Representatives from the two companies say that the study is too limited in scope, and add that they are willing to consider more challenging NEO than what the Harvard team took into account.
The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) team was led by astrophysicist Martin Elvis. The expert and his team classified asteroids close to our planet based on their type (rocky or metallic), their size and diameters, as well as on their accessibility to spacecraft.
The group estimates that possible earnings from the space rocks range from $800 million $8.8 billion (€587 million to €6.5 billion), which is a very wide variation margin. Therefore, it is entirely possible that harvesting rare and precious chemicals from NEO may be worthwhile in some cases.
The arXiv paper will also be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Planetary and Space Science. NEO are targeted for exploitation because they are believed to contain important amounts of elements such as platinum, iridium, and palladium.
One potential way of solving the mystery related to NEO composition is for NASA to launch a proposed mission that would capture such an asteroid, and then bring it in orbit around Earth. Subsequent studies of the object would reveal all we need to know about the feasibility of asteroid mining, IEEE Spectrum reports.