Scientists are trying to pull water out of asteroids to expand space travel — VIDEO
How do we unlock the secrets of the cosmos? Look to the night's sky and harness the power of asteroids, of course.
Aerospace scientists at Planetary Resources, an asteroid mining company, have a singular mission in mind: find energy resources in outerspace, utilize them on Earth and build out to rest of the solar system while making a business venture of it.
"Asteroids are something to worry about in threatening the Earth, but ... they are the greatest opportunity that we have," President and Chief Engineer of Planetary Resources Chris Lewicki said. "There is no way for the human race to become a multiplanetary species without using the resources in space."
Note: we're trying to colonize Mars, the red planet.
What are asteroids?
They're the leftovers. "Asteroids are primoridal material left over from the formation of the Solar System," Planetary Resources explains.
The mining group categorizes these masses of space debris into three types:
- C-type — the most common, believed to have been formed at the dawn of the solar system, source of mining water
- X-type — mostly made of metal, extremely dense, source of platinum
- S-type — mix of metal and rock, source of most commony found meteorite
But why asteroids?
In the way that fossil fuels transformed the form and function of the 20th century, these scientists believe the water and material found within asteroids could transform the 21st century.
The team hopes to pull water and precious metals from the asteroids in order to convert them into useful energy and material for space travel.
21st century gas stations
The group aspires to build orbiting gas stations, by harnessing the sun's power and performing electrolysis of water, or the splitting of H20 into liquid oxygen (02) and liquid hydrogen (2H2) respectively. Put them together and what have you got? Rocket fuel.
These "cosmic filling stations" would enable space travelers to lighten their load and carry less fuel with them when leaving Earth.
The company uses satellites to study the targeted material in space.
Pairing robotics technology with human ingenuity, Planetary Resources believes mining asteroids is the key to life beyond Earth.
Check out the video above.
Information for this report was provided by planetaryresources.com, nasa.gov and CNN.
