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Planetary Resources reveals plan for prospecting asteroids, creating interstellar gas stations
The cat got let out of the bag a little early, but Planetary Resources has now officially announced its existence and mission. We already told you that the venture plans to mine asteroids for profit, and is backed by a bunch of bigwigs from Silicon Valley and Hollywood. But now we know a bit more about the company after watching its announcement webcast and speaking with co-founder Peter Diamandis. Turns out, the company sees itself not only as a business venture, but as an entity that will pave the way for extending human influence throughout the solar system. Read on after the break for more.
James Cameron-backed Planetary Resources to search the universe for Unobtainium
Planetary Resources will reportedly announce later today that it's developing and selling low-cost spacecraft to mine asteroids close to the Earth. The space exploration and natural resources venture is led by X-Prize creator Peter Diamandis, Eric Anderson and NASA's former Mars chief, Chris Lewicki -- with cash backing from James Cameron, Eric Schmidt and Larry Page amongst others. Within a decade, the company hopes to kickstart a 21st century gold rush by selling orbiting observation platforms to prospectors with significant rewards -- a 30-meter long asteroid could hold as much as $50 billion worth of platinum at today's prices. The company's own teaser materials promised that the project would add "trillions of dollars" to the world's GDP, which sounds like a film we saw recently.
