We're Getting Serious About Mining Asteroids

Asteroids could one day provide the components for your smartphone. (Credit: Dabarti CGI/Shutterstock) As humanity gobbles up natural resources to satisfy the demands of economic expansion, a growing number of enterprising corporations are eyeing outer space as the next source of valuable commodities. Asteroid mining is making the leap from science fiction novels and into corporate boardrooms as new technologies bring the idea within reach. We've already landed a probe on a comet, satisfying the first requirement for potential mining activities. Figuring out how to extract potential resources and return them to Earth, well, that's another question.