It is called Psyche-16, flying in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, carrying enough gold on it to “give no” to each person on Earth nearly 1,000,000,000,000 – 1 trillion USD .
We have not determined the origin of gold, the alchemists of many centuries ago also did not find a way to turn iron into gold, there are theories that gold comes from star collisions in the Universe, … But once we have enough gold to be rich, we probably won’t care where the huge fortune comes from.
Money falling from the sky is real: scientists have just discovered a meteorite made of solid gold worth $700,000,000,000,000,000,000, or $700 billion. If the Space mining race does break out, then this gold block floating in space will be the biggest motivation.
It is called Psyche-16, flying in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, carrying enough gold on it to “give no” to each person on Earth nearly 1,000,000,000,000 – 1 trillion USD . The amount of metal in the meteorite – including gold, silver and nickel – is truly unimaginable. But no one believes in the giant gold in the Universe until we prove its existence.
NASA is planning to do so, launching the project in 2022.
The amount of gold that comes to market each year is too small compared to what the Universe can bring. In the next decade, if one wants to dominate the trade in this rare metal, one will have to reach for the stars.
Gold rush of the 21st century
Can we extract gold from a large meteorite? This billion-dollar question needs many industries to answer together, such as space travel and rocket research, mining and many other related industries.
Speaking to the Outerplaces news site, Professor John Zarnecki, president of the Royal Astronomical Society, estimated it would take 25 years to “get evidence that the asteroid mass exists”, and another 50 years to start operating. gold mining chain.
Two factors are essential for this project to succeed: the economic potential of anyone involved and how advanced the spaceflight technology is. The US is not the only country watching the golden meteorite, other economic powers also have their own plans.
According to Mitch Hunter-Scullion, founder of the UK-based Meteorite Mining Company, this will be a new explosion in the mining industry.
“Once you get the infrastructure in place, the opportunities you get are almost endless,” says Hunter-Scullion. “An immense amount of wealth lies in wait for someone brave enough to take on a new challenge, which will emerge during the meteoric craze.”
Psyche-16 will likely be the new Holy Grail, which will be the goal of the current space travel industry. But science will not stop, the endless journey of discovery will only stop temporarily at the golden meteorite.
What is the current meteorite mining market like?
We already have a niche for this new industry. According to calculations by Allied Market Research (AMR), by 2025, it is estimated that the market value will reach $ 3.8 billion.
Value comes from new space missions, cash flows into space mining technology, the ability to 3D print new materials and increasingly advanced structures. According to AMR, although the rocket design segment accounts for four-fifths of the total industry income and will continue to dominate until 2025, the meteorite mining segment will be most likely to explode. People have begun to see the benefits of going to space in search of precious metals.
Not only is Psyche-16 notable, other mineral-rich meteorites are also within sight. The asteroid belt in our Solar System has other good candidates, like a meteorite that is 200 meters long and worth $30 billion based on the amount of platinum it has on it.
Who will be the first to “raise” about the coins floating in the air?
China claims to have the upper hand in the new mining race. We all know they have reason to boldly assert that.
The United States has a different view of the space travel industry. NASA is heavily focused on space exploration and science missions, while China is more focused on “eating out”, building a short-term space economy.
Europe has just begun opening a new gold mine in Romania, but is also keeping a close eye on the development of the meteorite mining industry. Earlier this year, the European Space Agency ESA announced a partnership with ArianeGroup, Arianespace’s parent company, to launch a lunar mission in 2025. They are looking to start mining on the Moon.
Since 2016, the small country of Luxembourg has seen the appearance of 10 new space mining companies. Some of them are directed to the Moon, the rest keep an eye on the meteorites that orbit the Earth.
Photo taken from the probe before touching the surface of the meteorite.
Japanese company iSpace, a private space enterprise, plans to launch a lunar satellite in 2020, and is expected to land on the surface in 2021. Last September, Japan also landed. successfully winged the probe down to the asteroid surface.
Anyone who touches a billion-dollar gold block 750 million kilometers from Earth will become the holder of the largest gold in the Universe.