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Humans want to mine the moon. Here's what space law experts say the rules are
https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/moon-mi … -1.6568648
Mining Mars? Where's the Ore?
https://www.seeker.com/mining-mars-wher … 28965.html
Mars' large volcanoes mountains themselves might also prove fruitful, says SETI planetary scientist Adrian Brown.
"We never know what we're going to find around the volcanic edifices," said Brown. "But they are covered with dust" and not ideal places to land rovers for exploration. So it might be a while before we ever find out.
Other potential mineral hot spots are the abundant large impact craters on Mars, said West. One reason is that craters offer up exposed rocks to prospect, which saves a lot of digging.
Mining robots key to colonizing Mars — Elon Musk
https://www.mining.com/mining-robots-ke … elon-musk/
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Mars Rovers & Orbiters
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A giant impact 4.4bn years ago appears to have enriched the Martian mantle with noble metals like gold and platinum.
https://astrobiology.nasa.gov/news/rare … l-impacts/
In volcanic areas like Elysium, Noctis Labyrinthus and Tharsis, future explorers may find precious metals ores. These areas contain material that has reached the Martian surface from the mantle.
"Plan and prepare for every possibility, and you will never act. It is nobler to have courage as we stumble into half the things we fear than to analyse every possible obstacle and begin nothing. Great things are achieved by embracing great dangers."
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Extra Iron could rust and absorb water and Oxygen.
But that could be good, if it produced/produces Natural Hydrogen.
I think I like the idea that every world is unique. It is like a cosmic random number generator.
Worlds that are not like Earth, may have things to give us that Earth is not as good at.
Although Earth is the best planet, lets consider that that is true for us.
But the vastness of space offers so much, it appears.
Done
Last edited by Void (2024-04-04 17:57:45)
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old Mars Express 2013 vid
https://sci.esa.int/web/mars-express/-/ … eral-globe
mineral maps comparison
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Pure sulphur found on Mars.
https://www.space.com/nasa-mars-curiosity-sulfur-rocks
If we can find concentrated deposits of sulphur, then we have the key ingredient for manufacture of sulphuric acid. This can be used for acid leaching of ores, allowing metal oxides to be converted into soluble sulphates.
"Plan and prepare for every possibility, and you will never act. It is nobler to have courage as we stumble into half the things we fear than to analyse every possible obstacle and begin nothing. Great things are achieved by embracing great dangers."
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Mars is full of methane!
https://youtu.be/FdqGW6VRD-o?si=7UqHv0lqm8ruNksQ
It turns out that most of the original CO2 atmosphere was absorbed into the regolith and converted into methane. If we could access this then it is a huge resource.
In other news, it appears that most of Mars original water is now trapped within a layer 11-20km deep within the crust. Accessing it will be difficult. But this is where life will be, if it is still around.
Last edited by Calliban (2024-12-10 22:03:55)
"Plan and prepare for every possibility, and you will never act. It is nobler to have courage as we stumble into half the things we fear than to analyse every possible obstacle and begin nothing. Great things are achieved by embracing great dangers."
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The Smectite is a big discovery. Here I see a possible use for it as well: https://www.nature.com/articles/srep08775
Quote:
Published: 05 March 2015
Intercalation and Retention of Carbon Dioxide in a Smectite Clay promoted by Interlayer Cations
L. Michels, J. O. Fossum, Z. Rozynek, H. Hemmen, K. Rustenberg, P. A. Sobas, G. N. Kalantzopoulos, K. D. Knudsen, M. Janek, T. S. Plivelic & G. J. da Silva
Scientific Reports volume 5, Article number: 8775 (2015) Cite this article
I also have found information that talks about Nitrogen and Ammonium in Smectite.
https://www.researchgate.net/publicatio … tion_zones
(NH4-)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/a … 1710001596
So, some information I have come across says that the Smectite layers could be 1100 meters thick on Mars in places. And there is more evidence for in on the surface of Mar in the Southern Hemisphere than for the Northern Hemisphere.
Curiously, I used to work with Bentonite in the mineral processing of Taconite.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bentonite
It was used to glue beneficiated Taconite Concentrate into little clay balls, which they were cured in an inclined rotary kiln, to make Taconite pellets.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taconite
Image Quote:
Magnetics were the primary method used at our facility but, floatation which I am not very familiar with was under study.
At the time I was there 40 or so years ago, they were just beginning to experiment with a floatation method to beneficiate non magnetic iron.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/a … 1683900108
Quote:
Research paper
Beneficiation of iron ore by flotation — Review of industrial and potential applications
Author links open overlay panel
R. Houot
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/a … 7513001453
Quote:
Investigations on different starches as depressants for iron ore flotation
Author links open overlay panel
Bhagyalaxmi Kar
,
Hrushikesh Sahoo
,
Swagat S. Rath
,
B. Das
So, on Mars perhaps some flotation method could be used, to separate a Iron concentrate, and if we wanted to mimic what a taconite processing facility might do, we would use a "Balling Drum", to make pellets, and then we might bake those, but I think you would then go strait to smelting the iron.
In our setup the pellets were so that the concentrate could be shipped elsewhere to the blast furnaces towards the East Coast.
The pellets would be good in the blast furnaces as they allowed the flow of air in the process.
We might scale it down though and include other alterations of method.
I suppose we might consider some sort of microbe to extract the iron instead to make an even better concentrate.
Well some source of iron from poor ores on Mars would probably be very much desired.
Ending Pending
Last edited by Void (2024-12-11 09:27:51)
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Granite appears to have been produced on Mars by volcanic distillation.
https://news.gatech.edu/news/2013/11/18 … anite-mars
On Earth, granite rock is relatively rich in uranium and thorium. Yosemite granites contain up to 47ppm uranium and 181ppm thorium.
https://www.osti.gov/biblio/6783966
This suggests that the places to start prospecting for U/Th on Mars are volcanic lava plains. Areas of lava plain that have seen subsequent hydrological interaction may be especially promissing. It is possible that we may find actual uranium ore bodies there that we can mine. Cerberus Fossae would be a promissing location to investigate. The Elysium region in general is promissing.
Uranium and thorium ores that are mined will require transportation to wherever we intend to process this material.
Last edited by Calliban (2025-01-28 06:09:22)
"Plan and prepare for every possibility, and you will never act. It is nobler to have courage as we stumble into half the things we fear than to analyse every possible obstacle and begin nothing. Great things are achieved by embracing great dangers."
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Mars Global Surveyor was launched in November 1996, lost contact November 2006. It included radiation sensors that could detect and map thorium from orbit. So a relatively low resolution map of thorium is available. It's in volcanic highlands. Thorium is considered an indicator mineral for uranium, but I think thorium itself should be used. It's safer for power production, and more plentiful. But either way, a map is available.
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Mars Global Surveyor was launched in November 1996, lost contact November 2006. It included radiation sensors that could detect and map thorium from orbit. So a relatively low resolution map of thorium is available. It's in volcanic highlands. Thorium is considered an indicator mineral for uranium, but I think thorium itself should be used. It's safer for power production, and more plentiful. But either way, a map is available.
I have seen that map. It is based on gamma emissions detected from orbit. It does shown regional variations in thorium abundance in surface grains and rocks. Unfortunately, it can only give a skin deep and low resolution snapshot of the Martian thorium adundance. But it may help zero in on which parts of the planet prospecting should begin. There is a definite hotspot to the north west of Elysium.
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/images/pia0425 … latitudes/
Last edited by Calliban (2025-01-29 04:51:46)
"Plan and prepare for every possibility, and you will never act. It is nobler to have courage as we stumble into half the things we fear than to analyse every possible obstacle and begin nothing. Great things are achieved by embracing great dangers."
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