The Astronomy Thread
- Thread starter Araxen
- Start date
The only time I was excited for an eclipse, was when I was in my teens, when they built a set for Delores Claiborne in the stadium near where I lived, and I got to meet Stephen King.
Yeah nice enough dude, but creepy at same time. I could easily imagine him being some freaky serial killer type if his upbringing had been slightly different.
Yeah nice enough dude, but creepy at same time. I could easily imagine him being some freaky serial killer type if his upbringing had been slightly different.
- 1
meStevo
I think your wife's a bigfoot gus.
- 6,362
- 4,639
No way, that's hobbyist processing of the latest Juno data I believe.
- 1
Tuco
I got Tuco'd!
- 45,395
- 73,466
NASA plans mission to a metal-rich asteroid worth quadrillions
I'd much rather look at a closer and smaller asteroid that's more manageable, but maybe it's impossible to see those asteroids.
The idea of putting solar powered robots on the asteroid that mine it and whip platinum whiffle balls to earth is amazing.
I'd much rather look at a closer and smaller asteroid that's more manageable, but maybe it's impossible to see those asteroids.
The idea of putting solar powered robots on the asteroid that mine it and whip platinum whiffle balls to earth is amazing.
- 1
- 24,487
- 45,378
Its total value is zero since its inaccessible with even theoretical technology unless you count a working, scaling emdrive...
- 1
Big Phoenix
Pronouns: zie/zhem/zer
- 44,536
- 92,936
Jysin
Ahn'Qiraj Raider
- 6,267
- 3,994
Tuco
I got Tuco'd!
- 45,395
- 73,466
Beyond estimating the composite material of it, the values all assume that pricing stays the same when you add a massive influx of it. The pricing also assumes that there's no associated cost of extracting it, because that cost is infinite like Cad says.
But in reality if a 200km hunk of heavy metal were to gently land into hundreds of small hunks next to train stations worldwide and separate cleanly into pure masses of litre sized metal bars, what would happen is that the price of heavy metals would massively drop.
Even dirt has a price of course, the price to shovel dirt into a truck and then dump it on your drive way.
The more interesting result is technologies/industries that would be enabled or helped by cheap access to rare earth elements. I don't know of any specific industries that would be helped, but I have to imagine computers, lasers, solar panels etc would all be improved if we could just make everything out of gold/platinum/whatever.
But in reality if a 200km hunk of heavy metal were to gently land into hundreds of small hunks next to train stations worldwide and separate cleanly into pure masses of litre sized metal bars, what would happen is that the price of heavy metals would massively drop.
Even dirt has a price of course, the price to shovel dirt into a truck and then dump it on your drive way.
The more interesting result is technologies/industries that would be enabled or helped by cheap access to rare earth elements. I don't know of any specific industries that would be helped, but I have to imagine computers, lasers, solar panels etc would all be improved if we could just make everything out of gold/platinum/whatever.
- 1
ShakyJake
<Donor>
- 7,617
- 19,227
I mentioned this before in the (I think) Politics thread. What if the U.S. started to mine the shit out of the asteroid belt (or NEOs) for precious metals to pay off the national debt? Setting up the infrastructure would be significant but would pay for itself easily in the long run.
- 1
Skanda
I'm Amod too!
- 6,662
- 4,506
From what I've read about it NASA doesn't give two shits about the material value of 16 Psyche. They say it's the only large asteroid we've seen that is made up of metals. Everything else is rocks, minerals and ice. The theory is it is the core of a failed planet and the hope it by taking a look at it they may learn something about planetary cores.
- 2
Tuco
I got Tuco'd!
- 45,395
- 73,466
iannis
Musty Nester
- 31,351
- 17,656
Basically at that point you're hitting a situation where money as a form of exchange becomes meaningless and you're back to straight barter.
Which it wouldn't surprise me all that much if that's how global economics already works. And then we just sort of throw a money figure on it to make some domestic sense of it.
But all economic systems are modeled around scarcity of resource. A virtually unlimited supply of x... that's something new.
But I guess it's really not virtually unlimited. Maybe the supply is, but the extraction and delivery isn't.
- 1
Cybsled
Avatar of War Slayer
- 16,410
- 12,039
"Unlimited" for current usage. That is one of those quotes where centuries from now, kids studying it will get a good laugh out of it, like how we used to laugh at people hundreds of years ago for thinking Cod and Whale stocks were unlimited.
- 1
Any feasability behind shorting a bunch of commodity futures and saying "were mining an asteroid" to drive the price of those futures down....and then funding your asteroid mining excursion off that free money?
- 1
Lambourne
Ahn'Qiraj Raider
- 2,710
- 6,518
Gene Cernan, the last person to walk on the moon, dies aged 82, Nasa announces
There's just 6 people left that have been on the moon, all in their 80s. I hate that we'll probably lose all of them in the next few years, and go back to living in a time where no living person has walked on the moon. I know it's expensive and probes are more effective but it feels like such a massive step back.
There's just 6 people left that have been on the moon, all in their 80s. I hate that we'll probably lose all of them in the next few years, and go back to living in a time where no living person has walked on the moon. I know it's expensive and probes are more effective but it feels like such a massive step back.
- 1
- 1
Tuco
I got Tuco'd!
- 45,395
- 73,466