URANIUM FOUND ON THE MOON! MINING IMPLICATIONS

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mr_mark

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As reported at Space.com, uranium has been found on the moon by the Japanese lunar probe. This is the opening which everyone has been hoping for and has huge implications for private space. Now let's hear some ideas on how to make this happen.
 
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docm

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Start by funding COTS-D then encourage development of an F1-class engine with a COTS Heavy Lifter program.
 
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CommonMan

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Now if there is MONEY to be made, just watch how fast we and every other country will go to the moon now.
 
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scottb50

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CommonMan":s8opvakj said:
Now if there is MONEY to be made, just watch how fast we and every other country will go to the moon now.

I've looked at most reports and none give any estimate of the amount found. While not that uncommon down here it takes a great deal of refining to create usable ore. Now Gold or Silver could be a different story, relatively easy to process and extract, compared to Uranium.
 
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wick07

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scottb50":14h96b4u said:
I've looked at most reports and none give any estimate of the amount found. While not that uncommon down here it takes a great deal of refining to create usable ore. Now Gold or Silver could be a different story, relatively easy to process and extract, compared to Uranium.

Even disregarding amount, you have to compare the price to extract and refine in space, vs that same cost on Earth. I don't think there is any naturally occuring material on Earth that can be mined and shipped back to Earth cheaper than just doing it here. No IMHO the only draw in terms of resources in space are going to be things we just can't get here (or must be produced at substantial cost).
 
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tampaDreamer

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To my mind it is a cost-reducing benefit. You can send a nuke reactor to the moon and mine your fuel there.
 
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MeteorWayne

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Remember, you have to mine, then process, then build a reactor....
 
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tampaDreamer

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MeteorWayne":w71kcaqv said:
Remember, you have to mine, then process, then build a reactor....

Well you'd send the reactor up, I imagine. But yeah, mine and process "up" there.
 
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exoscientist

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Might make possible manned missions to the outer planets using nuclear reactors without the concern of launching large amounts of radiative materials from the Earth.


Bob Clark
 
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JonClarke

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What's the grade? Nothing in the original source indicates that this is anything like ore grade, or even anything outside the normal known variation on the Moon. Seems very much like someone has added two and two and got fifty. Unless you have got concentrations in the hundreds (or better thousands) of ppm it is not something to get excited about. Plus you would need a few hundred thousand tonnes as well.
 
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CommonMan

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JonClarke":3m27v6tx said:
What's the grade? Nothing in the original source indicates that this is anything like ore grade, or even anything outside the normal known variation on the Moon. Seems very much like someone has added two and two and got fifty. Unless you have got concentrations in the hundreds (or better thousands) of ppm it is not something to get excited about. Plus you would need a few hundred thousand tonnes as well.

It doesn’t matter to me if there is really enough to mine or not. This could be what it takes to start the space race. We should tell the whole world that there is GOLD by the tons on the moon. WHY? Because that is what make progress. All the countries around the world would be having their scientist try to come up with better, more advanced space ships and equipment for this. Maybe with more scientist working on the space programs we might advance farter, faster than we are now.
 
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SpaceForAReason

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The best way for this to generate any industry interest is:

1. Develop a business plan (potential customers, startup and operation requirements, estimated break-even and payoff, calculated risk, projected future)
2. Supply a thorough survey analysis showing a significant amount of available resource.
3. Supply multiple amples taken from various locations in the survey area.

Without any of this no mining company would be interested. The first an foremost problem is that supply cannot exist without demand. Lately the locals on Luna city have not yet developed a demand.
 
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neilsox

Guest
I suppose we can build a tiny robot factory which digs up moon soil and separates the uranium and a few other elements which may eventually have utility for future moon colonies. If the robot processes one ton of soil per year and separates one gram of uranium worth about 5 cents, investors will not be enthused about a ten ton per year robot factory, on the moon, or anywhere else in space. Neil
 
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radarredux

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exoscientist":2skfswdr said:
Might make possible manned missions to the outer planets using nuclear reactors without the concern of launching large amounts of radiative materials from the Earth.
Lots of unknowns, but the possibilities are intriguing. However I fear it may be like clean fusion energy, which is always 30 years in the future.
 
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