'Earth’s balance at risk': Mining the Moon could trigger an apocalypse, warns NASA
Produced by: Manoj Kumar
Lunar Threat
The Moon’s pristine environment faces potential destruction due to uncontrolled space mining, raising alarms among NASA and scientists worldwide.
Resource Rush
Corporations and nations eye the Moon’s water ice and rare minerals, essential for future technologies, sparking a celestial competition for dominance.
Who Governs?
The lack of a regulatory framework leads to pressing questions: who controls lunar operations, and how can the Moon be safeguarded?
Environmental Impact
Mining the Moon could disrupt its fragile surface, with lunar dust threatening missions and the loss of polar ice deposits impacting both lunar bases and Earth.
Tidal Changes
Altering the Moon’s surface could affect its reflectivity, disrupting Earth’s ecosystems, tides, and possibly life itself in unpredictable ways.
Learning Lessons
NASA and experts advocate for sustainable lunar exploration, drawing on Earth’s history of environmental damage caused by careless resource extraction.
Global Framework
The Artemis Accords, spearheaded by NASA, promote ethical practices and cooperative research to ensure the Moon’s future remains scientifically valuable.
Tech Solutions
Emerging technologies, such as in-situ resource utilisation (ISRU), aim to minimise the need for physical mining, reducing potential environmental harm.
Call to Action
University of Arizona’s Professor Richard Green warns that swift action is required to establish international agreements to protect the Moon’s unique features.