INCREDIBLE scenes show NASA testing a vehicle designed to extract vital resources that could help humans live in the lunar environment or even on Mars.
Engineers at Kennedy Space Center in Florida are experimenting with RASSOR (Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot) on a simulated lunar surface.
RASSOR’s counter-rotating drums dig up simulated moon dust to extract regolith, the loose, fragmental material found on the Moon’s surface.
The opposing motion of the drums helps RASSOR grip the surface in low-gravity environments like the Moon or Mars.
“With this unique capability, RASSOR can traverse the rough surface to dig, load, haul, and dump regolith that could later be broken down into hydrogen, oxygen, or water-resources critical for sustaining human presence,” NASA said Tuesday.
The space agency is using the foundation of RASSOR’s development to inform IPEx (In-Situ Resource Utilisation Pilot Excavator), a newer vehicle being prepared for a potential
technology demonstration mission on the Moon.
IPEx is still in the advanced development and testing phase.
Improvements on RASSOR with refinements in scale, modularity, and mission capability are being made to support future lunar resource extraction missions.
Mining the Moon is shaping up to be a high-stakes space race, with billions of dollars and future survival on the line.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has pegged the value of untapped lunar resources in the hundreds of billions.
Those include frozen water, which could support life or be converted into rocket fuel for deep space missions.
The surface is also believed to hold rare earth metals used in electronics and defense tech.
But the Moon’s most promising payload might be helium-3- a clean, non-radioactive isotope that could fuel future nuclear reactors.
The substance was fetching around $2,500 per liter last year, according to the Edelgas Group.
“That’s a huge market, in principle, and something is coming along very fast,” Martin Elvis, a senior astrophysicist at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, told Business Insider.
Elvis warned that with no strict global rules, the Moon is becoming a lawless frontier.
What is Moon Mining?
Moon mining refers to the extraction and utilization of natural resources found on the Moon’s surface and subsurface. These resources include water ice, helium-3, rare earth elements, and regolith (lunar soil), which can be used to support lunar habitation, generate energy, and facilitate further space exploration.
Scientists at NASA and the US Geological Survey are using their Earthly expertise to identify and catalog resources on the celestial body to look for valuable materials – from minerals and crushed rock that can be used to make dwellings and equipment, to ice that can be turned into drinking water and even rocket fuel.
Key resources of interest include:
- Water Ice: Found in permanently shadowed lunar craters, water ice can be converted into drinking water, oxygen for breathing, and hydrogen for rocket fuel.
- Helium-3: A rare isotope on Earth, helium-3 is abundant on the Moon and holds promise for future nuclear fusion energy generation.
- Rare Earth Elements: The Moon may harbor significant quantities of rare earth elements, essential for electronics and other technologies.
- Regolith: The Moon’s soil, or regolith, contains oxygen bound in minerals, which can be extracted for life support and fuel.
He compared the current push for space mining to a “Wild West,” where speed and land grabs beat cooperation and sustainability.
CHINA’S RACE TO MOON
NASA, China, and several private firms are racing to claim pieces of the lunar surface in the coming decade.
But some scientists worry that quick-and-dirty extraction could wipe out decades of astronomical opportunity.
Lunar zones rich in resources also happen to be gold mines for science.
The far side of the Moon offers an ultra-quiet location perfect for peering into the early universe.
Its permanently shadowed craters, ideal for water collection, are also key studying the birth of galaxies.
Elvis said even minor human activity, like mining vibrations, could disrupt delicate instruments and lunar research.
“Mining for water is probably the worst,” he said.
Some protections do exist, such as the Artemis Accords, a non-binding agreement from 2020 signed by over 50 nations.
The pact permits space mining if it follows the 1967 Outer Space Treaty and is done “safely and sustainably.”
But Robert Massey, deputy director of the Royal Astronomical Society, said that’s not enough.
He argued that future space rules must prioritize science alongside profits.
“There should be more stakeholders than just the wealthy and companies that want to do this,” Massey said.
He called for planetary “parks” and preservation zones to shield key lunar sites from commercial drilling.
