0
Space Resource Processing
In ProgressEstablish the foundational infrastructure for asteroid mining and material processing in space. This phase focuses on developing the supply chain for raw materials needed for subsequent construction phases.
Total Cost
$13.66B
Duration
10-15 years
BOM Items
5
Dependencies
None
Objectives
- Deploy asteroid prospecting satellites
- Establish first mining operation on near-Earth asteroid
- Build orbital material processing facility
- Create initial stockpile of construction materials
- Test and validate in-situ resource utilization techniques
Project Timeline
Activity Timeline
Critical Path: 84 months
In Progress
Completed
Pending
Critical Path
Year 0Year 1Year 2Year 3Year 4Year 5Year 6Year 7
Click on activities to view detailed specifications. Gold indicators mark the critical path.
Bill of Materials
Spacecraft
| Item | Quantity | Unit Cost | Total Cost | Specs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Prospecting Satellites Small satellites equipped with spectrometers for asteroid composition analysis | 32 units | $5.00M | $160.00M | View Details |
Transport Vehicles Cargo spacecraft for moving materials between asteroids and processing station. Krypton/iodine propulsion (xenon not viable due to supply constraints - demand exceeds global production 15-20×) | 15 units | $133.33M | $2.00B | View Details |
Robotics
| Item | Quantity | Unit Cost | Total Cost | Specs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mining Robots Autonomous mining and extraction robots for asteroid surface operations | 20 units | $50.00M | $1.00B | View Details |
Infrastructure
| Item | Quantity | Unit Cost | Total Cost | Specs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Material Processing Station Orbital facility for refining raw asteroid materials | 1 station | $10.00B | $10.00B | View Details |
Power Systems
| Item | Quantity | Unit Cost | Total Cost | Specs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Solar Power Arrays Power generation for mining and processing operations | 100 MW capacity | $5.00M | $500.00M | View Details |
Total Estimated Cost: $13.66B
Multi-LLM Consensus Analysis
This phase has been analyzed by multiple frontier AI models. Below is a synthesis of their findings, highlighting areas of agreement and divergent perspectives.
G
Gemini 3 Pro$5.4B
±40%
G
GPT-5.2$9.5B
±35%
Consensus
$7.5B
Range: $5.4B - $14.5B
Consensus Duration: 10 years
Key Agreements
- + ISRU (In-Situ Resource Utilization) as foundational strategy
- + Prioritize water/propellant extraction over metals initially
- + Target boulder-scale (1,000-10,000 ton) objects first
- + Use Solar Electric Propulsion for capture tugs
- + Process in cislunar space, not LEO
- + Critical need for dust mitigation systems
Divergent Perspectives
- ~ Optimal cislunar location (L5 vs NRHO/DRO)
- ~ Whether to include metals processing in Phase 0
- ~ Nuclear backup power necessity
- ~ Specific target mass range
- ~ Timeline feasibility (7 years vs 10-12 years)
Open Questions (Research Priorities)
These questions must be resolved through funded research before full execution:
? Anchoring mechanics on rubble-pile bodies
? Microgravity material separation efficiency
? Long-term autonomous operations reliability
? Regulatory framework for asteroid manipulation
? Dust behavior in cislunar plasma environment
Related Research Topics
Click a topic to search for related papers in the Research Hub.