As a result of scientific research, it has been discovered that many substances in nature are no longer sufficient to fulfill the needs of humanity. Some science fiction fans and scientists have argued that these substances should be obtained from space, as iron, gold, diamond, copper, etc. substances either do not form on earth or take many years to form. But some people argue that this vision will never be realized, that it is just a dream. How true is that?
First of all, I would like to mention why it is not unnecessary to search for elements and other natural resources from celestial bodies in space, which is called space mining. Iron, which is one of the most used substances throughout history, was discovered as a result of the researches made by scientists, that it did not form on earth, but descended to the earth by meteorites. (We understand it because the Earth’s temperature is not as high as the temperature required for iron to form. So digging even a substance like iron is a kind of space mining for us.) It means even mining iron in the world would be considered a form of space mining. So space mining is not useless.
According to research, the world will not be able to provide the source materials we need in the near future.This means we have to find another source. Because natural ores such as gold, iron and diamonds are not alternative materials such as petrol and coal. While humans are trying colonize in Mars, mining in space doesn’t sound ridiculous at all. This is one of the first space activities that NASA will do when it works on and solves the fuel shortage in rockets.
In short, it should not be said that space mining is a completely false science fiction theory. Space mining is currently being done by many scientists, and we are much closer to that than just imagining it. The thought of today is the future of tomorrow.