Asteroid "fishing" rig and take it to the moon (Image source: Reproduction / Keck Institute for Space Studies)

Researchers at the Keck Institute for Space Studies in California have recently confirmed that NASA has seriously considered plans to build an unmanned robotic spacecraft to capture an asteroid and take it into lunar orbit. The mission would cost about $ 2.6 billion and would be completed in the 2020s.

Oddly enough, this seems like a great alternative to the idea of ​​sending a manned mission to some asteroid near Earth. Proposed by the Obama administration, this mission would place astronauts in space for at least six months, away from Earth's magnetic field - which could shield them from radiation - and any possibility of rescue in case of trouble.

With the new plans, the mission would become much safer and offer the advantage that the asteroid could be easily reached by robotic probes and even humans.

How would the mission work?

To accomplish this mission, the scientists at the Keck Institute plan to send a sun-heated ion-powered probe mounted on an Atlas V rocket. The spacecraft will travel to a small asteroid about 7 meters wide and, after To study it, it will use a 10m x 15m “net” to drag it to Earth's natural satellite. The whole process would take 6 to 10 years to complete.

In a few decades, we may see an asteroid orbiting the moon (Image source: Reproduction / Keck Institute for Space Studies)

But there are still many details to be settled. One of the proposals is to build a base for astronauts at a point between Earth and the moon, so scientists can study the captured asteroid with the help of telepresence technologies. Nor is the possibility of landing on the surface of the asteroid itself.

This type of mission could make it easier to do longer manned missions, such as reaching a distant asteroid or even going to Mars. In addition, having an asteroid orbiting the moon may be of interest to private companies interested in space exploration and mining.