The geopolitical interest in the moon is undeniable, but there is one mineral that is the ambition of the great powers: helium-3.
Author: Rafael Clemente
This question was asked more than half a century ago and is relevant again now that Americans and Chinese prepare to return to the moon, Earth’s only natural satellite. Why come back?
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Both powers are doing so, this time with the intention of staying for longer stays than the brief visits of the first astronauts in the 1960s and 1970s. geopolitical interest In this race, it is indisputable.
And the Moon is an excellent scientific laboratory. Are still many unknowns to clarify its originits evolution and with it the evolution of the early times of the Solar System.
The absence of an atmosphere and a magnetic field offers very special conditions for making astronomical observations from its surface. AND the hidden side would be an ideal place to install radio telescopes, safe from electromagnetic interference generated on Earth. Of course, simple scientific curiosity cannot justify the huge cost of the enterprise.
But there are other commercial interests on the moon one of them is the existence of water. Of course, in most parts of the satellite, its existence – solid or liquid – is impossible: in the vacuum and heat, the ice sheet would sublimate and the gases would escape into space.
Several experiments have confirmed the existence of water ice. Some satellites have detected this by analyzing neutrons from cosmic ray bombardment, a signature that indicates the presence of hydrogen atoms embedded in the regolith.
Although they also exist another element potentially economical on the lunar surface and is called helium-3.
A surface filled with helium-3
Helium-3 is stable isotope of helium which is formed in our star and is carried to us by the solar wind. On Earth, the magnetic field and atmosphere act as a shield, but on the Moon, this protection does not exist, and over millions of years helium-3 has been absorbed into the earth.
Our entire satellite is a possible storage of helium-3. At least in theory.
How much of this material does the Moon hide? Some calculations suggest this between one and three million tons, almost all of it accumulated in the outer layers of the regolith, so its extraction would be relatively easy.
On Earth, trace amounts of helium-3 remain trapped in deep soil layers and occasionally escape in emissions from some gas fields.
Most are produced artificially in nuclear reactors, by irradiating lithium or by the decay of tritium, an element used in thermonuclear bombs. The gradual dismantling of these arsenals reduced their availability.
What is the value of helium-3?
Helium-3 has been described as the fuel of the future in fusion power plants. Its reaction with deuterium releases enormous amounts of energy and produces harmless helium-4 atoms as waste without the emission of dangerous radiation.
But is a very rare element on Earth: it is only available in very small amounts, barely enough for some experiments.
Of course it is very expensive: over $30,000 per gram. World consumption, limited by limited supply, is just over half a kilo per year.
It is used to construct equipment for the nuclear industry, especially neutron detectors.
And it is increasingly used in biomedical diagnostic imaging applications with equipment for magnetic resonance and X-ray spectroscopy.
Analysts estimate that there is a inquiry helium-3 potential per worth about US$400 milliona cake that is not only very attractive, but also represents a clear growing trend.
This substance may be rare on our planet, but there are certainly deposits on the Moon that can be easily exploited because it is absorbed in the upper layers of the regolith.
What might have seemed like science fiction 10 years ago is now a real business opportunity.
*Article published on May 5, 2024 in El País, PRISA MEDIA. Read the full content here. PRIMICIAS reproduces this content with the consent of PRISA MEDIA.
