The idea of mining and mining precious metals in asteroids is no longer unique to science fiction movies. We know that private entrepreneurs are making serious plans in this area. But there’s a catch: Only a small fraction of known asteroids contain these precious metals, and these asteroids lie far from Earth in the main asteroid belt. However, a study of two smaller, but much closer to Earth asteroids has revealed that they are of both scientific and commercial interest. The mines to be extracted from one of the asteroids over 50 years are estimated to be worth 11 trillion.
The asteroid called 16 Psyche contains iron, nickel, silicon and carbon. However, this asteroid comes close to the Sun at a maximum distance of 2.5 astronomical units. Bringing the mines to be obtained from here to Earth means incurring an unbelievably great cost. NASA is considering launching a probe to the asteroid Psyche next year. Meanwhile, astronomers from the Planetary Science Institute have identified two more promising asteroids. 1986 DA and 2016 ED85, which are in the class of near-Earth asteroids.
From the Planetary Science Institute, Dr. “According to our analysis, both asteroids contain 85% metal (iron and nickel) and 15% silicate material,” says Juan Sanchez. The reason asteroids like this are so metal-rich is that they originally came from an object like Earth, which had grown large enough for most of its metal to collapse into the core. When a minor planet disintegrates for some reason, the core fragments largely retain their metallic composition.
The 1986 DA is approximately 2.4 kilometers wide. Although it is a small asteroid in size, it contains 28 billion tons of iron and 2.5 billion tons of nickel, according to calculations. Cobalt and precious metals (gold and copper) are also found in much smaller proportions. If somehow space mining becomes a reality, even metals from a single asteroid could supply the world’s metal needs for a long time.
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