A Turkish scientist said that space mining will be fully practiced in about 100 years

Niyazi Belem, Head of the Department of Mining Engineering at Konya Polytechnic University (KTUN) in Turkey, confirmed in an interview with Anadolu Agency that according to current studies and predictions, minerals can be brought from space to Earth in quantities of 20 tons. 50 years from now, versus the amounts of grams brought in so far.

“I think space mining will be fully practiced in 100 years. Although it may seem incredible to us now, the technologies we use today were also great for people who lived 100 years ago,” says Belém.

The Turkish scientist recalls that some researchers predict that the world’s mines will be depleted within 50-300 years and that space mining could “pave the way for people to live more prosperous lives in the future.”

There is an asteroid called ’16 Psyche’ with a diameter of about 200 km between Mars and Jupiter. The value of platinum, gold, silver and other precious metals in it exceeds the world budget 136,000 times. [estos elementos] For the world, there will probably be no poor people,” Belem says.

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He also asserts that space mining appears possible and notes that space agencies such as the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) have sent spacecraft. surfaces.

“If the planned landing on the moon in 2023 is successful, we will be able to start space mining studies. At the moment, 3-5 countries seem interested in these space studies, but other countries will enter this sector once the advantages are seen,” Belem adds.

The scientist believes that in the near future space studies will become a useful discipline that includes most of the sciences.

“If we can develop science and technology, we will have a strong economy. As a country, we should invest in these kinds of technologies and our youth should work in this field,” says Belem.

Although he states that “it will not be easy to produce the necessary technology and start working”, he asserts that “we must be prepared. If we see that it is profitable, we will be ready. And if we see that it is not.” We will develop technology and we will not suffer from losses,” the world continued.

“If we allocate a budget for these research and studies and do important work, we will not only benefit from space technology but also other related technologies. You could say that the National Space Program [de Turquía] “It’s the first step toward this,” Belém says.

* Translated by Daniel Gallego.

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