Asteroid mining is a popular concept when it comes to science fiction, but it is now being considered seriously by scientists in order to access valuable resources in space. A recent study investigated the feasibility of asteroid mining and also analysed the challenges and opportunities.

Similar to Earth, a majority of asteroids contain vast amounts of valuable resources, including metals like platinum, gold and iron, as well as water, which can be used as fuel for spacecraft. Some asteroids are believed to contain trillions of dollars worth of minerals.

For the study, a team led by researchers from the Institute of Space Sciences (ICE-CSIC) analysed samples of C-type (carbon-rich) asteroids, which account for 75 per cent of known asteroids.

The findings, published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, might be a vital source of raw materials.

Professor Jacinto Alonso-Azcarate at the University of Castilla-La Mancha analysed the asteroidsamples, which were selected by the research group.

Despite the promise, asteroid mining faces significant technical and economic hurdles. The cost of accessing and extracting resources from asteroids is extremely expensive, and we don't even have the appropriate technology.

Source:Ndtv