Space mining (also called Asteroid Mining) is an interesting subject. Many projects are raising the required money to start sending prototypes in an effort to explore the possibilities.
This comes at a time when the world is becoming, once again, fascinated with space. Companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin are making tremendous strides. This result in a flood of money into the sector, generating start ups that carry great potential. Of course, we cannot overlook Virgin Galactic which is going to start space "rides" over the next year.
So what is the deal with space mining? Is this something that commodity owners on Earth should be worried about?
There is no doubt the potential take from minerals on asteroids is enormous. Some asteroids are rumored to be worth into the quadrillions. A find like that could crash global commodity prices.
The truth is that we will not likely see that happen. Anything found in space will remain there. It does not make economic sense to bring the finds back to Earth. Thus, the supply will not be radically altered.
Space projects are going to build upon each other for our move into that realm for the long term. All advancements will be part of the foundation upon which our interplanetary existence will be set upon.
What is interesting is that, unlike on Earth, these materials might actually be used for construction as opposed to financial speculation.
Technology is certainly going to influence markets going forward. We could see some emotional trading if a discovery in space is announced. However, since it is unlikely that anything returns to Earth, that will be short lived.
Of course, we could end up seeing markets open up for the off-planet materials found. Wall Street likes to bet on everything, so it only makes sense that someone will come up with derivatives pertaining to this.
There are other ways metals on Earth can be affected by technology. As that advances, we could see a crash based upon huge finds on this planet.
Things will get very interesting over the next decade.
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