Space Travel: Hurry Up, We Have Mining To Do

by Chris Owen on

Thoughts of space travel bring images of the spent space shuttle program, Richard Branson and companies jockeying to build the next best vehicle to supply the International Space Station. Low-Earth orbital flights for commercial purposes should happen later this year, so things are moving right along in that area as well. But now, there is an organization that announced plans this week to mine asteroids for precious metals, bringing back more riches than the planet has ever seen.

Employing cost-effective exploration technologies, Planetary Resources, Inc. hopes to mine Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) for raw materials, ranging from water to precious metals.

“Water is perhaps the most valuable resource in space. Accessing a water-rich asteroid will greatly enable the large-scale exploration of the solar system. In addition to supporting life, water will also be separated into oxygen and hydrogen for breathable air and rocket propellant,” said Eric Anderson, Co-Founder and Co-Chairman, Planetary Resources, Inc. in a multi-media news release and a webinar hosted earlier this week.

Touting benefits in the tens of billions of dollars, Planetary Resources says a single 500-meter platinum-rich asteroid contains the equivalent of all the platinum mined in history.”Many of the scarce metals and minerals on Earth are in near-infinite quantities in space. As access to these materials increases, not only will the cost of everything from microelectronics to energy storage be reduced, but new applications for these abundant elements will result in important and novel applications,” said Peter H. Diamandis, M.D., Co-Founder and Co-Chairman, Planetary Resources, Inc.

Of particular importance to deep space travel are the water-rich NEAs which can serve as “stepping stones,” providing space-sourced fuel and water to orbiting depots, revolutionizing exploration and making space travel dramatically more economical.

Chris Lewicki, President and Chief Engineer, said “Our mission is not only to expand the world’s resource base, but we want to increase people’s access to, and understanding of, our planet and solar system by developing capable and cost-efficient systems.”

Those working the space travel industry are looking at every angle that might make it happen efficiently. Recently, five aerospace companies contracted with NASA to study the idea of a new propulsion system, designed to turn the sun’s rays into electricity for space travel too.

In Space travel to get boost from solar power, Gadling reported energy from the sun as just one piece of the space travel puzzle. Now we have another one.


Dutch Astronaut Tweets Photos From International Space Station

by Kraig Becker on

One of the joys of travel is taking great photographs of the places we visit and sharing them with friends and family back home. In the age of mobile Internet access, and services like Instagram and Twitter, it is easier than ever to chronicle our journeys through photos no matter where we are at any given time.

That includes the International Space Station it seems as Dutch astronaut André Kuipers has been sending a steady stream of images back to Earth since he first arrived there in December. André snaps photos with his trusty camera then uses Twitter to share those images with the more than 215,000 people who follow him. As you would expect, the photographs are often stunning shots of the Earth, the ISS or some other heavenly body.

This is the 53-year old physician’s second trip to the space station where he conducts experiments in a wide range of fields including microbiology and physiology. He is scheduled to remain in orbit until July 1st, so until then we can all continue to enjoy his fantastic photos by following him at @astro_andre. You can also read his blog, which he updates regularly as well, by clicking here.

Both images in this post are courtesy of Kuipers. The one above is of the moon setting behind the Earth while the one below is the ISS over Europe. Both are beautiful.

Photo Of The Day: Happy Cosmonauts Day

by Meg Nesterov on

Today marks the 51st anniversary of manned space travel, and if you happen to be in a former Soviet country, you may be celebrating Cosmonautics Day. On April 12, 1961, 27-year-old Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first human in space, orbiting the Earth for nearly two hours. The USSR beat the US in the space race by just three weeks, and two years later, Russia would send the first woman to space. Flickr user (and new father, congrats!) AlphaTangoBravo snapped this picture of a Russian Cosmonauts poster he picked up in Moscow. You can celebrate the anniversary of space travel, or Yuri’s Night, at parties around the world.

Have any travel photos commemorating historic travel dates? Add ’em to the Gadling Flickr pool for another Photo of the Day.

Space traveler brain scans bring troubling results to NASA

by Chris Owen on

Space travel appears to have taken its toll on NASA astronauts. Those in space for more than a month have shown unexpected symptoms that could set back plans for longer deep-space missions.

Researchers scanned the eyes and brains of 27 astronauts who had spent an average of 108 days in space, either on space shuttle missions or aboard the International Space Station. In many of the astronauts, they found symptoms consistent with intracranial hypertension, a potentially serious condition that happens when pressure builds within the skull.

“NASA has placed this problem high on its list of human risks, has initiated a comprehensive program to study its mechanisms and implications, and will continue to closely monitor the situation,” Dr. William Tarver, chief of the flight medicine clinic at NASA’s Johnson Space Center told Fox News in a recent article.

A symptom of excess cerebral-spinal fluid around the optic nerve was found in 33 percent of the astronauts and a flattening of the back of the eyeball was found in 20 percent.

“The MRI findings revealed various combinations of abnormalities following both short and long-term cumulative exposure to microgravity also seen with idiopathic intracranial hypertension,” said Professor Larry Kramer, lead author of the study.

Odds are the study will have no effect on Virgin Galactic‘s plan to begin suborbital commercial flights this year.

Flickr photo by cobra.creations

First woman in space turns 75

by Meg Nesterov on

Last week, Russia marked the 75th birthday of Russian space pioneer Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space. In 1963, Tereshkova orbited the earth 48 times in three days, logging more flight time than all the previous American astronauts combined, and becoming the first and only woman to travel solo in space. Before launching into space, Tereshkova exclaimed, “Hey, sky, take your hat off!” The US space program would not send a woman into space for another 20 years, when Sally Ride flew as a crew member on the Space Shuttle Challenger.

Tereshkova later married another cosmonaut, held several of the highest offices in the Soviet Union, and is revered as a hero among women and Russians. Inspired by Ms. Tereshkova? You can go inside the Russian space program this fall for a cool $14,000.

[Photo courtesy Martin Addison via Wikimedia Commons]