Scientists want to fight a rush to gold in space



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(Newser)

The resources of the solar system seem only endless. They are not, say scientists who have proposed to declare more than 85% of the solar system "wilderness", in the shelter of human development. The main goal, the guardian reports, is to prevent us from using all the resources at our fingertips. This goes against the argument of mining companies that taking minerals from other planets would preserve the Earth's environment, according to the BBC. "Once you have operated the solar system, there is no more where to go," said Martin Elvis, an experienced astrophysicist at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Massachusetts. Elvis and the British philosopher Tony Milligan declare that the opening of an eighth solar operating system is less restrictive than it appears; According to one report, an eighth of the iron of the asteroid belt could power the Earth for centuries.

Space mining companies are interested in iron and precious metals in asteroids, as well as minerals and water on the moon. guardian. The European Space Agency is planning a village on the moon. Deciding areas to protect is difficult, Elvis and Milligan write Acta Astronautica, which is part of the practical and ethical problems they underline, should be settled. Mining missions could begin in 10 years, explains Elvis. "Once this has started and someone has made a huge profit, there will be the equivalent of a gold rush," he said. "We have to take it seriously." (An extraterrestrial star has been discovered in our galaxy.)

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