“Prospectors always go first, that is what has happened throughout history,” says Chad Anderson, managing director of the Space Angel Network, a global network for early investors offering access to the emerging private space industry.

Those involved in looking to mine asteroids believe it has the potential to shape and define the 21st Century. “The results could be revolutionary in benefits to space exploration, and all of us on Earth,” says Steve Eisenhart, the senior vice president of Space Foundation, a global non-profit which promotes space-related endeavours.

Sourced from space

The first thing to understand about space mining is that it is not only about mining asteroids, or even the Moon and then returning those resources back to Earth. “Instead, there is a lot of value in keeping the resources in space and using them to continue our exploration of the Solar System and beyond,” says Anderson.

The most important resource for prospective space miners is water. The reason: travelling into space by current standards is the equivalent of taking a road trip across America, but having to bring all your fuel with you – only much worse. It takes more energy to escape the first 300 kilometres from Earth than the next 300 million kilometres. “Once in Earth’s orbit, you are halfway to anywhere in the Solar System,” says Lewicki.