The Knowledge to Decide

Does anyone own the moon? Or other planets for that matter? The prospect of mining on the moon and other celestial bodies is fast becoming a reality. In 2018, Moon Express, based in Florida, aims to be the first private entity to put a small robotic lander on the moon with an investment of approximately USD1.85 million to set up an operations room and an engineering laboratory with a firings test stand for spacecraft engines. Private space exploration is picking up. Due to ambiguities in the Outer Space Treaty, it is not clear who can profit from such business opportunities. Such ventures could exploit the fact that no international treaties apply laws to the moon. Will governments allow private space exploration and the mining of moons and planets? https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/spirethoughts/raking-in-the-moolah-through-moon-mining/

Platinum mining in space is getting cheaper and easier. Prospect probes can probably be built for tens of millions of dollars each. An asteroid-grabbing spacecraft could cost USD2.6 billion. Space mining seems more lucrative than initially thought. An asteroid the size of a football field could contain USD25 billion to USD50 billion worth of platinum. Although space mining is still not viable commercially, the possibilities are endless. Space mining could even lead to in-space manufacturing. When will space mining become a viable market for investors? https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/spirethoughts/space-mining-for-platinum-on-the-cards/