NASA Targets Lunar Mining Trial Within Next Decade

Quincy Jon, Tech Times 28 June 2023, 02:06 pm

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) gears toward launching a trip to the moon to mine for valuable materials.

Scientists revealed on Wednesday that NASA had made significant progress in lunar soil excavation, with 2032 as the goal year, per WION. With future aspirations to incorporate iron and rare earth elements, the agency's first emphasis will be extracting oxygen and water.

NASA hopes to complete Artemis and send American astronauts to the moon by 2025. The crew's diversity and inclusion will demonstrate NASA's commitment. The lunar mission's data and expertise will enable a Mars mission.

Training begins for the @NASAArtemis II astronauts!

While some of us are enjoying the start of summer vacation, they just began training for their mission to the Moon and back.

Here's the trajectory map they covered in class this week: https://t.co/YF0SKiTSl8 pic.twitter.com/9LpBav6ZOf
— NASA (@NASA) June 24, 2023

An Out of This World Investment

The mission's advancement of commercial space prospects is one of its primary goals. NASA wants to entice business investment by estimating prospective resources, including electricity, water, and lunar soil.

During a mining summit in Brisbane, NASA rocket scientist Gerald Sanders emphasized the significance of using lunar resources to save costs and promote the growth of a circular economy.

Sanders said that the endeavor is an attempt "to invest in the exploration phase" and to sufficiently understand the resources to bring down risks "such that external investment makes sense that could lead to development and production." He underlined that when exploring the moon's resource possibilities, NASA has only just begun to scratch the surface.

Later this month, NASA plans to launch a prototype drill to the moon as a first step. The organization wants to start a test processing facility and conduct more extensive lunar soil extraction by 2032. Commercial rocket firms are initially anticipated to be the primary users, using the moon's resources to produce fuel or oxygen.

US v. China Space Race is On

While China is undertaking ambitious lunar missions, NASA is stepping up its attempts to obtain valuable moon metals.

NASA is looking for experts to investigate how moon metals collected from the lunar surface may be used for items like 3D printing, according to a report from Popular Mechanics. The organization has recently started research projects to build a metal manufacturing pipeline on the moon and has partnered with colleges.

Dr. Matthew Deans of NASA Ames Research Center Intelligent Robotics Group noted that "certain metals" might be extracted from various portions of the moon. "We might need to start manufacturing with them if we are going to build things on the moon." With this proactive approach, NASA hopes to stay ahead of lunar exploration and China's ambitious goals.

Before 2030, China wants to add a fourth module to its space station and send men to the moon, per Space.com. Lin Xiqiang, deputy head of China's human spaceflight organization, stated that their mission involves a "short stay" on the moon's surface and "human-robotic joint exploration."

The stakes are high, and there is enormous potential for resource use and scientific gains as NASA and China compete to explore the moon. The effort to use the moon's resources represents a significant turning point in human space exploration, spurring innovation and advancing humanity's knowledge of the cosmos.