NASA wants to uncover the mystery behind the asteroid “16 Psyche.” that may contain a priceless treasure trove of minerals. “We’ve been to all the different planets, we’ve been to other asteroids. But we’ve never visited a body that has been made of entirely metal,” said Carol Polanskey, project scientist for the Psyche mission. Now NASA, led by researchers at Arizona State University, plans to send an unmanned spacecraft to orbit 16 Psyche – an asteroid roughly the size of Massachusetts, made of iron and other precious metals. The mission’s leader estimates that the iron alone on today’s market would be worth $10,000 quadrillion.
Previously: NASA Selects Two Missions to Visit Asteroids
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 21 2017, @03:12AM
In my college economics class, one day the prof puts a donut on his desk.
"I have an extra donut I don't need." he said. "Does anyone want it?"
About 10 hands go up. "Oh, looks like we'll need to have an auction." The price quickly escalates, helped with a little prodding from the prof, and eventually he gets a price of $20 for the donut. The buyer takes it and relishes his victory over his deprived classmates.
The prof then says "Ok, now that we've established the price of a donut..." and brings out the rest of the dozen he had hidden behind the desk.
I think the last one went for less than a dollar.
Great lesson.