Extraterrestrial resources
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Stakeholder Type

Extraterrestrial resources

3.4.1

Sub-Field

Extraterrestrial resources

The resources available in space divide broadly into two categories: those that can be used to support in-space activities and those that can eventually be brought back to Earth.

Future Horizons:

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5-yearhorizon

Moon landings trigger public debate on lunar resources

Decommissioning the International Space Station encourages competition among companies from the US, Japan and China to offer research and manufacturing facilities in orbit. NASA’s Artemis programme and commercial landers increase global interest in the Moon, with missions demonstrating the first extraction of water and metals from the lunar surface. This work drives an international debate on how best to make use of the Moon’s resources and to spread the benefits across all humanity while preserving the lunar environment for future generations.

10-yearhorizon

In-orbit manufacturing comes of age

Space-based manufacturing becomes possible7 with the growing resources available at space stations in low Earth orbit. The first demonstrations of continuous transmission of solar power from orbit to Earth provide valuable momentum for net-zero efforts, driven particularly by countries like Japan that have limited terrestrial resources of their own. But the cost of the enterprise raises questions about the ability to scale production to levels that will have significant impact.

25-yearhorizon

The Moon becomes the gateway to the solar system

Lunar mining facilities begin to continuously produce propellant, metals and building materials on a usable scale. This paves the way for a lunar base that is a self-supporting manufacturing facility for beyond-Earth space exploration. At the same time, lunar orbiting facilities such as space stations become key hubs in the networks of travel, manufacturing and tourism. Much of this is enabled by a lunar communication network and formal lunar governance and policy developed by international diplomacy.
5 Most of the near-term opportunities involve using resources in situ, with Moon exploration set to become a significant driver of science and technology in this area.

Operating on the Moon will require locally produced resources, such as water extracted from ice at the lunar poles. This can be broken down into oxygen and hydrogen for propellant and life support, and the first pilot mission to demonstrate this capability will be an important milestone. Characterising the make-up of the regolith and the ice it contains will be an important early goal for these missions.

Near-Earth asteroids are a more distant potential source of precious metals, ores and ices. But the huge cost of such missions is a significant stumbling block.

In 2023, the Space Solar Power Demonstrator (SSPD-1) satellite demonstrated that solar power could be harvested in space and beamed to Earth in the form of microwaves. Future challenges include expanding panels to the kilometre scale.6

A different kind of resource is found on the far side of the Moon: a unique radio silence that astronomers hope will give them access to clear signals from elsewhere in the universe.

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