NASA Now Accepting Applications From Companies That Want To Mine the Moon

cold fjord writes "The Verge reports, "NASA is now working with private companies to take the first steps in exploring the moon for valuable resources like helium 3 and rare earth metals. Initial proposals are due tomorrow for the Lunar Cargo Transportation and Landing by Soft Touchdown program (CATALYST). One or more private companies will win a contract to build prospecting robots, the first step toward mining the moon. Final proposals are due on March 17th, 2014. NASA has not said when it will announce the winner."

Can we just mine the dark side?

[alta]

I mean I'd rather not look up at night and see a strip mining operations on the moon.

Or maybe all mining has to be underground, no above ground mining. You're allowed one small area to be your entry point and that's it.

Tritium ?

[stooo]

Mining tritium on the moon ?
not a good idea.
If you bring it back and it explodes in the athmosphere during reentry, we are all dead.

BTW, slashdot beta is shit.

Enough with the euphemisms

[Sloppy]

I think "mining" is a pretty damn euphemistic way to talk about viscious slaughter of all the moon's whales.

Re:Space 1999, Sorta

[Anonymous Coward]

Okay, am I the only one have flashbacks to 13 September 1999, when the nuclear storage facility on Moonbase Alpha exploded sending the Moon hurtling out of orbit?

So, mine the Moon, ship the material to Earth... Um, won't this change it's mass and as a consequence, it's amount of gravity in generates and then it's orbit? Sorry for being all Doom & Gloom here.

So does sending a rocket up from Earth. Hey, if you shine a flashlight up in the sky, some of those photons will escape all the atmosphere and due to conservation of momentum actually push Earth in the other direction.

Re:I'm afraid this means war

[GoodNewsJimDotCom]

We're all doomed when they mine away the Helium that's been keeping the moon floating up there. :P

Re:I'm afraid this means war

[gnick]

Hey - TANSTAAFL.