Space exploration may seem fun and romantic at the moment, but a serious conflict looms between the lines. Just like Earth, the galaxy has a wealth of resources and also like Earth, the powers that be will fight for them. Seeing as NASA, Virgin, SpaceX, and others are starting to plan the population of the solar system, it’s only a matter of time before star wars, becomes a reality.
SPACEX AND VIRGIN HAVE A NEW COMPETITOR
Anyone interested in space should be aware that Virgin and SpaceX are perhaps the most popular private space companies. While they continue to make headlines, a mysterious competitor lurks in the distance. Working with Luxembourg, a California company hopes to enter the space race. Deep Space Industries (DSI) is its name and mining resources are its game. The plan for DSI is to send a probe into Earth’s orbit sometime soon. If the mission is a success, a launch of asteroid-mining machines will be released to search for water and minerals. Seeing as NASA, SpaceX and Virgin are more concerned with exploration and tourism, they just might steer into the booming mining market.
NASA TO MINE IN SPACE
NASA doesn’t seem like they would associate themselves with mining, however, due to a controversial bill from Barack Obama, they may not have a choice. The bill gives US companies legal ownership of product extracted from asteroids. This will cause an inevitable galactic hunt for resources. As a government agency, NASA will surely take part. Seeing as the bill allows private companies to take part, SpaceX and Virgin just may have plans of their own. SpaceX and Virgin haven’t turned down profitable opportunities in the past, so this might not be much different.
GOOGLE PLAYING GAMES
Surprisingly, it seems that Google may have a hand in all of this. Besides NASA, DSI and others, Google’s parent company Alphabet want in on asteroid mining. Even more interesting is the group of backers supporting this movement. Shareholders include Larry Page, Eric Schmidt and a certain Richard Branson. It certainly seems like the forces of Earth are gearing up for a mining war our solar system has never seen. As our planet continues to starve itself of resources, the outcome of this race will hold the future of our existence.
