Scientists warn the rings of Saturn in danger of disappearing because of the man

A group of scientists recently warned that the famous rings of Saturn could eventually disappear, but not thanks to humans.

According to Inverse, asteroid miners and tech billionaires could loot precious rocks in space, including the frozen circles of Saturn, in the very near future.

This theory stems from a study conducted by a group of researchers who wrote the next issue of Acta Astronautica. The group suggested that relevant policy makers develop a clear set of guidelines and restrictions that must be strictly followed by all actors in the space sector.

"If we do not think about it now, we will go forward, as usual, and in a few hundred years we will face an extreme crisis, much worse than that currently reigning on Earth, "said Martin Elvis, senior astrophysicist at Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and one of the two authors of the paper, said. "Once you have operated the solar system, there is no where to go."

Elvis was referring to private space agencies like Elon Musk's SpaceX and Blue Origin, which are changing the way we look at the space industry. SpaceX for one makes travel in space more "affordable", or even promises that space tourism will become a thing of the future. The company also hopes to establish human settlements on other planets like Mars.

Blue Origin, on the other hand, envisions a future where millions of people could live and work in space. This multibillion dollar future industry has aroused the interest of investors. However, realizing this business could mean harnessing the resources of our solar system.

Elvis, along with co-author Tony Milligan, a philosopher at King's College London, suggested the "principle of the eighth principle" allowing humans to manage the resources of the solar system. The suggestion suggests that only one-eighth of our space system can be exploited while rest should be protected.

Besides the rings of Saturn (which could be an abundant source of rocks and ice), humans could also extract the iron located on the asteroid belt. The iron content of the asteroid belt is so abundant that even if only one-eighth is extracted, there is still a million times greater than what is found on Earth. Another example is helium 3, which would be abundant in the moon and could be worth more than gold in the future.

The moons of Saturn have different aspects. In the picture: In this image provided by NASA (National Administration of Aeronautics and Space), the shadow of Saturn on the rings is seen in visible light with the wide angle camera of the Cassini spacecraft on May 21, 2016. Photo: Getty Images / NASA / JPL-Caltech / Institute for Space Science