Mining and extracting resources in space

Space mining has been gaining attention as a promising way to support a future space economy. However, numerous challenges must be addressed before this industry can become a reality.

Instead of extracting materials from space to be brought back to Earth, the first commercially viable example is likely to be "in-situ resource utilization," where resources are mined and used in space. This could save costs associated with launching materials from Earth. Resources such as water, iron, nickel, gold, platinum group metals, lunar regolith, and ice could be harvested for construction, electronics, life support, or as propellant.

To mine in space, some proposals include using techniques similar to Earth-based mining, like bucket-wheel excavators or tunnel boring machines. Others suggest more unconventional methods, like vacuum-like machines to pull regolith up a tube or biomining, where bacteria introduced to an asteroid consume certain minerals and produce a gas that can be harvested.

Despite the potential benefits, several challenges persist, such as high launch costs, communication delays, the need for mining operations to be mostly automated or remotely controlled, and the varying conditions of planetary bodies. It is also important to consider the environmental impact of space mining and whether the proposed techniques will work in different space environments.

Nevertheless, companies are currently developing technologies for off-Earth mining, space resource exploration, and other uses in space. Examples include the Canadian Space Mining Corporation, OffWorld, and the Asteroid Mining Corporation.