As more countries and companies set their sights on space, it may make you wonder, what’s
the end goal? Do we simply want to be a space faring species? Exploring the solar system
for the betterment of humanity? Or do people smell profit in space? While researching this
video, I found out a lot of eye-opening reasons why mining in space, and especially on our
Moon, might well be something we see happening in the next couple of decades. Why? Well,
just wait until you find out what’s actually there to be mined. The first substance is
known as Helium-3. You may have heard of Helium-3 in sci-fi stories, as theories suggest it
is the ideal substance for a clean type of nuclear reactor, with no radiation and no
dangerous by-product. It also has uses in medicine and radiation detectors. However,
it is really rare on Earth. It does occur naturally, and can be found in deposits of
natural gas, for instance. But it’s generally not viable to extract, as even in natural
gas, there are only around 100 parts per billion. So, let’s say we had 1 billion m³ of natural
gas, you’d only be able to extract around 15kg of Helium-3 from it. A lot of the time,
that’s not economically viable. We can also produce Helium-3 as a by-product of the radioactive
decay of tritium. The problem with that though, is that tritium is a crucial component of
nuclear weapons, and so when the world slowed down the production of nuclear weapons, Helium-3
stockpiles also started to diminish. Assuming we don’t want more tritium in the world,
it means we need to find another source of Helium-3, especially if technology improves
enough for Helium-3 reactors to become a reality. Fortunately, we have a world in orbit around
Earth right now which has been bombarded by helium-3 for billions of years, thanks to
the Sun. Earth’s magnetic field deflects Helium-3 traveling with the solar wind around
the planet, whereas the Moon, with no magnetic field for protection, simply absorbs it in
the top layer of the ground, called regolith. We aren’t talking huge quantities, it has
at most 50 parts per billion, but because it is all over the Moon, not just in tiny
pockets, it can be collected alongside any other mining operation. It could also be used
to power reactors on the Moon itself, which would help a moon base be self-sufficient.
Some people think that Helium-3 mining on the moon will not be viable, however China
states that eventually mining Helium-3 is one of the primary goals of their Chinese
Lunar Exploration Program. American, European and Indian scientists have all stated it is
something they will consider further, and Russia is conducting a feasibility study on
this right now. Even private companies are eyeing up the possibility. Because the parts
per billion of Helium-3 are relatively low, even in the Moon’s regolith, it would make
sense that whoever was mining for Helium-3 would also be mining for something else in
the regolith at the same time. But what else can be found in it? As it happens, the lunar
regolith is packed with different minerals. Look at this false colour mosaic of the Moon,
each colour indicating different deposits of minerals found on the lunar surface. There
are plenty of metals to be found on the Moon in large quantities, like iron, titanium,
aluminium, silicon, calcium, and magnesium. Some of these metals are locked into hard
to access minerals and oxides, however, separating the metals will also often produce useful
by-products like oxygen and hydrogen. They are super basic, and not rare on Earth at
all, but unlocking these elements on the Moon itself will allow for a colony to be self-sustaining,
as oxygen means breathable air, hydrogen can be converted to fuel, and combining the two
will produce water. Unprocessed regolith could also prove useful, as it could potentially
be turned into “lunarcrete”, useful for building infrastructure on the Moon without
having to transport the materials from Earth. Glass could also easily be produced from lunar
regolith. And as I mentioned in a previous video, while it’s not super ideal, some
plants can grow in lunar regolith, helping any lunar base to be self-sufficient in growing
its own food, short of using hydroponics. But perhaps the most important resource found
on the Moon are - ironically enough - metals known as “rare-earths”. Interestingly,
rare-earths, which consist of this section of the periodic table, are not actually super
rare on Earth, however the difficulty in mining them is that they have not really collected
into big deposits. Rather, they are dispersed through the Earth’s crust. This means that
they are exceptionally hard to mine on Earth, and there are only a few countries worldwide
that have deposits large enough to do anything about it. Even then, most countries don’t
bother at all because of the massive environmental and human damages that come from the pollution
of mining them. The only country that did not waver from these problems is China, as
China has around 30% of the planet’s rare-Earth supply, and because it is one of the only
countries mining for them, they have a 95% control of the market. However, just as a
side note, one of its big mines was actually found in Myanmar, and with the military coup
that just took place, there may have been a shift in that mine’s control. In any case,
95% control of the market puts China in a powerful position worldwide, especially seeing
as these minerals are so valuable to our society, being components of various electronics and
batteries. Because of the massive push recently to switch to electric vehicles with their
huge battery packs, demand for these materials will only increase, so it’s worthwhile considering
where the minerals building the batteries come from. Are countries with somewhat sizeable
deposits, like the US, Canada, Australia, and South Africa going to start digging up
their backyard to extract them? Or rather than pollute the Earth further in our attempt
to go green, is it actually more feasible to get these rare-earths off the Moon instead?
Rare-Earths aren’t any more common on the Moon than on Earth, however, some deposits
have already been identified, and pollution on the Moon will certainly not have any of
the devastating environmental and human consequences attached to doing it here. As demand for these
elements inevitably goes up in the coming decades, it could well be that mining for
them on the Moon becomes economically viable. And not only that, but a control on the market
means control of the market price and whichever country is in control will have a tremendous
advantage. Will it be China, maintaining their position? Or will some of the other space
faring countries and companies want a piece of the pie? Only time will tell. Which leads
on to another curious question, who actually has mining rights on the Moon? Well, it’s
a bit unclear. The main space treaty, which most countries in the world have signed up
to, is called the Outer Space Treaty, and covers things like disallowing weapons of
mass destruction in space, disallowing military bases in space, and disallowing claiming any
celestial body. However, it doesn’t really cover mining. Other treaties have been put
forward which would cover mining in space, but so far only non-space faring countries
have signed up for it. Right now, it could just be a matter of first come, first served.
So, there we have it, a look into the future of what may occur on the surface of the moon.
What do you think, can mining on the Moon ever be worthwhile, or is it an expensive,
dangerous pipe dream? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. Thanks for
watching! Did you enjoy the video? Then I hope you will consider subscribing for more
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Thanks for all your support, I love making videos like these. All the best, and see you
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