They're back home. Astronauts return

[Daedalus]

Just want to put this one out there again. There are people who think they can seriously profit from this.

https://www.universetoday.com/articles/a-new-company-plans-to-prospect-the-moon

How a start-up plans to mine the moon for a rare form of helium

A private moon mission planned for 2027 will be the first step towards commercial lunar mining of rare and expensive helium-3

www.newscientist.com

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

A lot of SF authors, including myself and the authors of The Expanse, have portrayed asteroid mining as a major driver of space settlement. I already mentioned microgravity materials and pharmaceuticals and space tourism, and solar power satellites could be a major industry.

Do you think there will be lots of Rare-Earth minerals within those Asteroids?
Or will most of that stuff be common rock matter that we can get here on Earth?

Micro-Gravity Special Material Manufacturing makes alot of sense.
Pharmaceuticals that can only be made in space as well.
Space Tourism as well.

Solar Power Satellites that send energy back down to Earth would be useful.
Micro-Wave Power transmission, it was already portrayed in Sim City.

In my universe, there's also something called the Belt Homestead Act, paralleling the Homestead Act from American history, where the Earth government provides financial incentives for people to emigrate to space. (I originally saw it as a population-control measure, although I no longer think overpopulation is the threat to the Earth that we were always taught it was when I was younger.)

I think we're suffering from major Population Deflation, we need to get back our collective reproductive levels to at least be Neutral / Replacement point.

Or else we're going to lose a giant chunk of the population in the future if we don't replace 1:1 ratio.

That's a problem that we here in the West have. Not enough replacement children.

 

[Christopher]

Do you think there will be lots of Rare-Earth minerals within those Asteroids?
Or will most of that stuff be common rock matter that we can get here on Earth?

My understanding is that the mineral wealth of the Main Asteroid Belt far exceeds what we could ever extract from the Earth even if we stripmined the entire crust down to the mantle. It's also far easier to get to since it's closer to the surface.

The supply of rare-earth metals essential for technology is finite and in danger of depletion, as is the Earth's supply of helium, which is vital as coolant for high-tech manufacturing and equipment. Arguably we won't be able to maintain our modern technological society without space mining. Daedalus's link talked about helium-3, but ordinary helium-4 is essential as well, and we're rapidly running out of it here on Earth.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

My understanding is that the mineral wealth of the Main Asteroid Belt far exceeds what we could ever extract from the Earth even if we stripmined the entire crust down to the mantle. It's also far easier to get to since it's closer to the surface.

The supply of rare-earth metals essential for technology is finite and in danger of depletion, as is the Earth's supply of helium, which is vital as coolant for high-tech manufacturing and equipment. Arguably we won't be able to maintain our modern technological society without space mining. Daedalus's link talked about helium-3, but ordinary helium-4 is essential as well, and we're rapidly running out of it here on Earth.

I concur that Humanity isn't serious enough about our Helium Shortage, that part is critical.

Yet we waste it on Party Balloons & AirShips.

Next Generation (Air Ships / AirBorne Balloons / Dirigibles) needs to move onto Hydrogen to prevent waste of Helium & the Superior Buoyancy properties of Hydrogen.

Also, modern materials & safety regulations should make Hydrogen AirShips really environmentally friendly and fast enough.

The new StartUp, H2 Clipper, looks to revolutionize logistical transport of cargo via Hydrogen AirShips.

A good chunk of the problems comes from regulatory hurdles thanks to the Hindenburg incident that needs to get resolved along with using all our modern engineering know-how to update Dirigible tech to modern standards.

 

[Christopher]

I'm wholly in favor of any technological advance that will bring back zeppelins.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

Yes bring on the giant zeppelins....... That would be so freaking cool to have giant floating habitats

 

[valkyrie013]

The problem may be, that in asteroid mining, that you find So much of it, that it tanks the price of said metals. You find 10,000 metric tons of gold, the price plumets for example. So its pretty much if your early, you'll make money but by the 3rd asteroid, the price of everything your mining is dirt cheap.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

The problem may be, that in asteroid mining, that you find So much of it, that it tanks the price of said metals. You find 10,000 metric tons of gold, the price plumets for example. So its pretty much if your early, you'll make money but by the 3rd asteroid, the price of everything your mining is dirt cheap.

There's plenty of tech that can use Gold.

The whole point is to remove the "Rare" part of "Rare Earth Minerals".

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

I do not know if this is true but one of the telescopes we have in space found an exoplanet made of diamond.

 

[Christopher]

There's plenty of tech that can use Gold.

Can and does. It's a great conductor, it's easy to work with, it doesn't corrode, and it's non-toxic, so it's routinely used in electrical connectors in computers, phones, and other devices. There's a few dollars' worth of gold in every cell phone.

The whole point is to remove the "Rare" part of "Rare Earth Minerals".

I get what you mean, but they're not actually rare; they were called that by 19th-century chemists because they're rarely found in pure form and have to be separated out of their ores, but they're actually reasonably abundant. Still, they're in heavy demand in high technology, which creates scarcity.

I do not know if this is true but one of the telescopes we have in space found an exoplanet made of diamond.

There are carbon planets that are theorized to have mantles made of diamond. I featured the concept in my novel Star Trek: The Next Generation -- Greater than the Sum. I've seen it speculated that the core of Jupiter might be a giant diamond, and that the giant planets might have diamond rain.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Can and does. It's a great conductor, it's easy to work with, it doesn't corrode, and it's non-toxic, so it's routinely used in electrical connectors in computers, phones, and other devices. There's a few dollars' worth of gold in every cell phone.

I know, it's a great element to use in tech for so many reasons.

I get what you mean, but they're not actually rare; they were called that by 19th-century chemists because they're rarely found in pure form and have to be separated out of their ores, but they're actually reasonably abundant. Still, they're in heavy demand in high technology, which creates scarcity.

Then lets create enough abundance so that it doesn't become a issue.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

A lot of SF authors, including myself and the authors of The Expanse, have portrayed asteroid mining as a major driver of space settlement. I already mentioned microgravity materials and pharmaceuticals and space tourism, and solar power satellites could be a major industry.

In my universe, there's also something called the Belt Homestead Act, paralleling the Homestead Act from American history, where the Earth government provides financial incentives for people to emigrate to space. (I originally saw it as a population-control measure, although I no longer think overpopulation is the threat to the Earth that we were always taught it was when I was younger.)

Found it

Super-Earth Planet Likely Made of Diamond

The alien super-Earth planet 55 Cancri e is likely made of diamond and graphite, an not water and granite, scientists say. The discovery changes the chemical makeup of the exoplanet.

www.space.com

 

[publiusr]

I find that rather sad, actually….we've actually regressed to the point that simply coming back from low orbit is considered a historic feat.

I wanted modularity—-an Energiya/Buran Shuttle-2:

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EELV/Falcon liquid fueled boosters to launch satellites and the occasional capsule.

SLS-type Energiya modified as a wet workshop.

Buran type Shuttle but with turbojets like OK-92 was to have.

Here is a space-factory module that was to be launched:

Energia - Buran Space Transportation System

New home for 3K at the UMMC Museum in Pyshma:

www.secretprojects.co.uk

Marshall Space Flight Center was looking into upgrades:

Energia - Buran Space Transportation System

7-As it happens, the single-orbit mission trajectory pass very close from Moscow Actually, the opposite. Baseline Reference Missions 3A&B flew at 104 degrees inclination which would have not overflown the USSR landmass on the first rev. That is why, the deployment or retrieval of the payload...

www.secretprojects.co.uk

In recent years, Marshall has been a target of the NewSpace types…ironically a lot of hostility came from a lefty in Keith Cowing (well, his ancestor had a close call with a V-2). Even if V-2 hadn’t been made, Nordhausen would just have made VWs in its place.

MSFC never had the level of backing it deserved—there was talk about tri-propellant engines:

Mixed-Mode Rocket engine (tripropellant engines)

Mixed-Mode rocket Engines use two propellant with oxidiser The idea to use dense propellant during Launch then switch to hydrogen for more performance that why those engines are proposed for SSTO or air launch Shuttles this document by Aerojet from may 1977 is in depth study of Mixed-Mode...

www.secretprojects.co.uk

It makes me so angry how Old Space is disrespected by punk kids.

I'm wholly in favor of any technological advance that will bring back zeppelins.

Agreed.

Had we gone in that direction, the Twin Towers would remain standing.

Not everything should revolve around the almighty dollar.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

I want more people to be watching what ARCAspace is doing.

Their First Stage is a Electric Steam Rocket that is Re-UseAble.

Spoiler: ARCA Eco Rocket tested while under Ice Water.

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I also want more companies to focus on AeroSpike engines.

Those could be major game changers to the classic Rocket Engine with a Traditional Bell Nozzle.

 

[publiusr]

In the journal DEVICE, the folks at ETH trapped heat inside a block of quartz at 1000 degrees Celsius.. a Solar NTR core I suppose.

When I first heard of ARCA I was a bit skeptical…but tech is changing.

 

[Daedalus]

Balls of steel.

'I’d get on in a heartbeat': Starliner astronauts would fly on Boeing spacecraft again despite malfunctions (video)

"It is a great spacecraft, and it has a lot of capability that other spacecraft don't have."

www.space.com

 

[publiusr]

It has a cyclic/joystick.
Dragon doesn’t, IIRC