{Disarmed} Regolith fever: NASA kicks off the lunar mining era with a symbolic 10 cent check
The asteroids of our solar system are especially interesting for that new 'space gold rush' that is the mining of these celestial bodies . However, there is another clear immediate objective for this new discipline that many believe will be a lucrative business.
It's about our Moon, which also contains interesting elements that can be mined. NASA has started the era of lunar mining , and it has done so by signing a symbolic 10 cent check to the Lunar Outpost company, which has a short-term goal to begin collecting lunar regolith.
10 cents is just the beginning
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson presented that check to Justin Cyrus, CEO of Lunar Outpost, at the Space Symposium event. That check represented 10% of the bid (also symbolic) that this company made to boost its efforts to collect moon dust .
This unique contract poses a turning point in this new industry of space mining in general and lunar mining in particular with which it will try to collect minerals and resources from the Moon and other celestial bodies.
In xiaomist.com The race to be the first in asteroid mining: this is how the space "gold rush" is being consideredLunar Outpost had already developed an air quality sensor to protect space missions from lunar dust, and in fact that work has been used to create sensors that detect toxic components in fires and help better protect firefighters when they do their work.
That work will now go further, and in Lunar Outpost they want to collect lunar regolith and thus propose a system that can then develop an important role in the Artemis program and the future of space exploration.
It's true. Here is our 10 cent check signed by @SenBillNelson https://t.co/HFC76wq7MK pic.twitter.com/wQfQWS7AW8
- Forrest E. Meyen, 🚀 PhD (@ForrestMeyen) August 23, 2021
For Nelson, this collection is the first step for a potential reuse of lunar dust when building a certain type of "cement" with which to create constructions on the Moon, but they also want to collect ice at the poles of the Moon to create, for example fuel for rockets and other purposes.
Via | Space
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The news Regolith fever: NASA begins the era of lunar mining with a symbolic 10 cent check was originally published in xiaomist.com by Javier Pastor .
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