In 2023, NASA embarked on a mission from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to explore an asteroid estimated to be valued at an astonishing $10 quintillion.
This distant asteroid, known as 16 Psyche, ranks among the largest M-type asteroids known and is believed to consist of valuable metals such as gold, iron, and nickel.
The potential wealth of this asteroid is so immense that, in theory, it could make every person on Earth a billionaire if the profits were distributed equally. However, this scenario remains unrealistic.
Even with a spacecraft traveling 2.5 billion miles to examine the asteroid, significant challenges must be overcome before any mining of these metals can take place.
NASA’s interest in 16 Psyche stems from its unique characteristics. Once the spacecraft arrives at the asteroid, it will spend a few years gathering information, concluding its mission in November 2031.
According to NASA, 16 Psyche spans an impressive 173 miles (280 km) in width and 144 miles (232 km) in length, with a surface area covering 64,000 square miles (165,800 square km).
The asteroid’s massive size is a primary reason for NASA’s pursuit of the mission. Nicola Fox, associate administrator for NASA’s science mission directorate, stated, “Psyche is by far the largest, and that’s why we want to go to it. Because the smaller ones are more likely to have been changed by things impacting them, whereas the big one, we think, is going to be completely unchanged.”
In a statement, NASA mentioned that this journey could provide insights into planetary cores and planet formation.
The revelation of 16 Psyche’s immense value has led many to question the feasibility of mining the asteroid. However, distributing its wealth would likely destabilize the global economy, similar to the effects of every individual winning the lottery jackpot.
Monday Morning Economist elaborates on this point, highlighting that the sudden increase in precious metal supply would likely disrupt the economy. “Valuing Psyche 16 at $10,000 quadrillion is wild. Why? That value assumes current market prices. The increase in metal supply would likely send prices crashing down, making the asteroid less of a golden ticket than many people think,” they explain. “A flood of precious metals into Earth’s markets would most likely crash those markets and make the price of those metals almost worthless.”
Moreover, Live Science points out that, at a distance of 2.5 billion miles, extracting materials from 16 Psyche is not financially viable.
So, the dream of becoming billionaires from asteroid mining remains just that—a dream.