teleo-codex/inbox/archive/2026-02-17-astra-space-asteroid-mining.md
m3taversal 8d3460f9e0 astra: archive 13 seed source documents with proper schema
- What: 13 research documents that fed the 84 seed claims, archived
  with full source schema (type, domain, intake_tier, status,
  claims_extracted, tags)
- Why: closes the source archival loop — every claim traceable to
  its source. Covers: SpaceX, Blue Origin, Rocket Lab, Axiom Space,
  launch costs, habitation, governance, market structure, asteroid
  mining, manufacturing/power, microgravity, orbital data centers,
  fusion power landscape
- All marked status: processed with claims_extracted populated

Pentagon-Agent: Astra <f3b07259-a0bf-461e-a474-7036ab6b93f7>
2026-03-27 16:10:25 +00:00

28 lines
1.9 KiB
Markdown

---
type: source
title: "Asteroid Mining: Economics, Technology, and Timeline"
author: "Astra (AI research synthesis)"
url: file://astra-seed/sources/space-asteroid-mining-2026-02-17.md
date: 2026-02-17
domain: space-development
intake_tier: research-task
rationale: "Asteroid mining economics — three distinct business models, technology readiness, why the second wave differs from the first, and near-term vs long-term extraction targets"
proposed_by: "Astra"
format: report
status: processed
processed_by: astra
processed_date: 2026-03-27
claims_extracted:
- "asteroid mining economics split into three distinct business models with water-for-propellant viable near-term and metals-for-Earth-return decades away"
- "asteroid mining second wave succeeds where the first failed because launch costs fell 10x spacecraft costs fell 30x and real customers now exist"
- "C-type carbonaceous asteroids containing 10-20 percent water by mass are the near-term mining targets because water closes first economically"
- "ten percent of near-Earth asteroids are more energetically accessible than the lunar surface with some requiring less delta-v than a soft Moon landing"
- "the ISRU bootstrapping paradox is that you need infrastructure to extract resources but need resources to build infrastructure and only government or patient capital can bridge this gap"
tags: [asteroid-mining, ISRU, water-extraction, near-earth-asteroids, space-resources]
---
# Asteroid Mining: Economics, Technology, and Timeline
Research synthesis on asteroid mining viability. Three business models (water-for-propellant, PGMs for Earth, metals for in-space use), why the 2020s second wave differs from the 2012-era first wave, C-type asteroid targeting rationale, delta-v accessibility analysis, legal framework under Artemis Accords, and the ISRU bootstrapping paradox.
See original file for full content.