Are we seeing a repeat of 1969 and 1982?
Those were the two biggest years in United States space history. The first was obviously the Moon landing with the later the introduction of the Shuttle program.
A couple weeks ago, the first astronauts were launched into space by a private company. This is ushering the era of "commercialized space".
And it could be a modern day gold rush.
Most are familiar with names such as SpaceX and Blue Origin. These are just a couple of the companies that seek to profit handsomely from the heavens above.
Throughout human history, our space endeavors were forged by governments. These entities were interested in the progress that could be made. As always, since it was using taxpayer monies, profit was not part of the equation.
We are looking at something completely different with private companies. They require a profit to keep going. Hence, monetizing space is a priority. This brings up the question of what will be profitable?
The push over the past few years had made an enormous impact. Whereas the price to launch 1 kg into space was $54,500, the price now comes in at $2,720, a 95% reduction. This makes space flight a great deal more cost efficient.
Reducing cost, of course, is one of the things private industry is supposed to be good at. The most recent launch of the SpaceX Dragon module atop a Falcon rocket cost an estimated $55 million, and SpaceX founder Elon Musk claims the future cost of his reusable rockets could fall to a shockingly low $2 million per launch.
Opening up space presents many options. However, what will be profitable?
Obviously, space tourism is an area that will be leveraged by many companies. Virgin Galactic is already a publicly traded company with sites of flying in the next year. While the cost is still prohibitive for most people, the $250,000 per seat is garnering a lot of interest. Over time, we can expect this to drop especially if people like Musk are able to keep dropping the cost.
Many are starting to believe the most profitable area of space is going to be asteroid mining. What once was viewed as something far out is beginning to make a lot more sense to people. As technology advanced, we got a lot better at located asteroids that are close to Earth and are likely to be accessible.
The benefit to asteroids is the value they carry. After all, they are nothing more than rocks. The difference is that they can have $6-$7 trillion worth of minerals on them.
For this reason, some surmise the first trillionaire will come from space.
A challenge that we are seeing is that space is obviously the playground for the mega-wealthy. With names like Musk and Bezos starting to stake their claim, one has to wonder if we are seeing a repeat of what is here on Earth. We already are dealing with wealth inequality and providing access to some of the richest people on the planet is only going to enhance this.
Of course, the entire idea of "space ownership" is up for discussion. While international agreements ban countries from owning "space", there is nothing that prohibits private companies from staking a claim. This means it is highly prohibitive for startups to get involved.
Could we see cryptocurrency being a part of this process?
So far, we already see a number of cryptocurrency projects that have space as part of their plan. There are already some Bitcoin nodes in space, using satellites to validate block. A company called Sovereign Sky is looking to launch space telescopes that people can rent using cryptocurrency.
However, is there something bigger where cryptocurrency can enter the picture?
The idea of extending commons to space is appealing to many. Could we see a time when space exploration is funded through cryptocurrency?
If cryptocurrency takes off, providing people with a lot more money in their wallets, it is possible we see space ventures that use cryptocurrency as part of their business practice. This is true the more automation that is involved. Automated companies really align well with the idea of a DAO. Here we see "ownership" spread to those who are outside the mainstream financial system.
Whether cryptocurrency is involved or not remains to be seen. Nevertheless, we cannot dispute that space offers the opportunity to earn trillions of dollars.
It just takes a bit of money to get involved.
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