NASA’s mission to asteroid 16 Psyche could reshape our understanding of space mining, wealth, and planetary formation.
NASA is charting a new frontier in space exploration with its mission to 16 Psyche, a metal-rich asteroid believed to contain iron, nickel—and possibly gold—worth up to $700 quintillion. The spacecraft, launched in October 2023, is expected to reach the asteroid in 2029, not to mine it, but to study its composition and structure.
In 2019, early estimates of Psyche’s metal reserves sparked speculation that “everyone on Earth could become billionaires,” triggering debate about the economic and legal consequences of space mining.
Scientists believe Psyche may be the exposed core of a failed planet, offering insight into planetary formation. But extracting its metals presents immense logistical, financial, and legal hurdles.
NASA has catalogued over 1.3 million asteroids, many rich in rare elements. One, 2011 UW158, is thought to hold $5.4 trillion in platinum.
The Psyche mission could pave the way for future mining ventures and deepen our understanding of how wealth—and life—are distributed across the solar system.