<p> <BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>There is something of high value at least on the moon. Helium 3. If fusion power is ever going to work we will need to mine it on the moon to use in the reactors. Mars is probably beyond my life time but I am hoping to see the start of a permanent base on the moon. <br /> Posted by bdewoody</DIV></p><p>It's not that simple, though. Consider the following:</p><p>1) We are not close to having a functional commercial fusion reactor that has any use for Helium 3. So its value is completely hypothetical at this point. </p><p>2) Some competing fusion reactor designs that do not require Helium 3 may make lunar mining unfeasible.</p><p>3) Helium 3 is much more plentiful on the moon than it is on Earth, but it still will require moving huge amounts of lunar soil to get the Helium 3 out of it. We're talking about a massive mining operation which will have huge start-up and upkeep costs. There's no way we would spend the money to do that unless we were certain that Helium 3 was REALLY worth it. The reality is we may not need Helium 3, either because we find a design that doesn't need it, or because we never get a Helium 3 fusion reactor up and working.</p><p>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>You know, that is said very often, but I wonder how true it is. Is anyone aware of the economic value of He-3 and the costs to recover useable amounts? Is there any kind of economic analysis?Thanx, MW <br /> Posted by MeteorWayne</DIV></p><p>My thoughts as well Wayne. I think the reality is that we just don't know because we aren't close enough to a He-3 reactor. It would probably be a second generation fuel for a reactor that comes after ITER, which won't be operation for quite some time. And a lot of folks aren't sold on the tokamak design to begin with. And we're not just talking about an easy process here on the moon. We're talking about a major industrial mining operation in conditions close to zero G. The amount of development needed to make such an operation possible and ongoing is truly mind-boggling when you start to think about it. All for Helium 3? For that amount of money and development cost, there could be terrestrial methods of manufacturing it that we just aren't aware of yet that would be more feasible than lunar mining. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>