Startup company announces asteroid mining plans
Posted: Wed, Jan 23, 2013, 8:02 AM ET (1302 GMT)
For the second time in less than a year, a company has announced plans to develop a fleet of spacecraft to prospect and eventually extract resources from near Earth asteroids. Deep Space Industries unveiled its plans Tuesday to eventually mine asteroids for volatiles and precious metals for a variety of applications. The company is planning to develop a series of spacecraft that will first visit asteroids to study their composition, followed by missions to retrieve samples for return to Earth; these would be followed by more advanced mining efforts. The initial spacecraft would be ready for launch as early as 2015, although the company is still in the early stages of lining up investors. The announcement by Deep Space Industries comes nine months after another startup, Planetary Resources, announced plans to also develop spacecraft to study and visit near Earth asteroids, also with the long-term goal of mining them.
For the second time in less than a year, a company has announced plans to develop a fleet of spacecraft to prospect and eventually extract resources from near Earth asteroids. Deep Space Industries unveiled its plans Tuesday to eventually mine asteroids for volatiles and precious metals for a variety of applications. The company is planning to develop a series of spacecraft that will first visit asteroids to study their composition, followed by missions to retrieve samples for return to Earth; these would be followed by more advanced mining efforts. The initial spacecraft would be ready for launch as early as 2015, although the company is still in the early stages of lining up investors. The announcement by Deep Space Industries comes nine months after another startup, Planetary Resources, announced plans to also develop spacecraft to study and visit near Earth asteroids, also with the long-term goal of mining them.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Friday, March 31
Astra Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2022 Financial Results
Business Wire — 5:25 am ET (0925 GMT) Richard Branson Satellite Company Virgin Orbit Laying Off 85% of Staff
Business Insider — 5:22 am ET (0922 GMT) Virgin Orbit burns up in uncontrolled descent
TechCrunch — 5:22 am ET (0922 GMT) Virgin Orbit, Richard Branson’s rocket company, will lay off 85% of staff
CNN — 5:21 am ET (0921 GMT) Virgin Orbit stock plunges after report says company will cease operations
MarketWatch — 5:20 am ET (0920 GMT) |
