AstroForge to mine PGMs from asteroids

Space mining pioneer AstroForge plans to launch its second mission later this year as it works towards delivering proof of concept of its ability to mine precious metals, specifically platinum group metals (PGMs), from the plethora of asteroids orbiting in space, many of which contain higher concentrations of metals than deposits on Earth.

The company targets near-Earth asteroids, less than 400m in diameter and up to 10 million miles from the Earth. A rocket will carry its refinery into space, reaching its destination within an estimated six to nine months.

"I want to be mining the universe and take mining off-world, especially around the precious metals. Mining in space is more sustainable and cost-effective. The PGMs we are after, particularly iridium and platinum, are crucial for green hydrogen production," AstroForge chief executive Matt Gialich told Mining Journal.

A M-type, or metallic asteroid, is essentially a ball of iron that may also contain various other metallic elements, such as PGMs. The refinery will land on the asteroid, and a laser and magnet combination will be used to remove and separate material by ablation. The company expects to bring back to Earth refined ore containing greater than 80% PGM's, with a maximum payload of 1200kg on the spacecraft. It is evaluating landing sites in Utah, US, and Australia.

"The physics of reentry are well understood," Gialich said.

Gialich said the company has narrowed a field of 1.5 million potential asteroids into 40-45 targets based on their spectroscopy, density and other criteria.

"We are pretty confident we have identified an M-type asteroid," he said.

Mission 2 will be taken into orbit by a Space X Falcon 9 rocket for a TLI or trans-lunar injection, whereby the payload, a 100kg probe called Odin, will head towards the moon and use a gravitational assist to change direction to hone in on the target asteroid. The mission will cost less than $10 million, including the launch, which is fully funded.

"We will go to an asteroid and do a flyby to confirm we have found a metallic asteroid in space," Gialich said.

Gialich said there are no regulatory constraints to mining asteroids as they are not contested bodies in the way the moon is becoming. The 1967 Outer Space Treaty only prohibits the deployment of nuclear weapons in space, and the 2015 Space Act specifically allows US industries to "engage in the commercial exploration and exploitation of space resources, say commercial companies can mine asteroids for profit."

AstroForge is a private company that has raised at least US$13 million in seed funding. Gialich would not comment on who the initial investors have been or when and how much new funding it will require in the future. He also said it has no immediate plans to obtain a public listing.

"We have to hit a couple more milestones before going public, but going public in the US is really difficult, and the costs have inflated beyond what we intended. We have been able to raise money via private funds, so we don't need to go to the public market right now," Gialich said.