Comment Re:RAH had this in the 50's (Score 1) 235
> . Asteroid mining isn't going to do anything, directly, for people on Earth.
This is incorrect. Space is already a $300 billion/year industry, of which NASA only represents 6%. Most of it is in the thousand or so satellites in Earth orbit, doing communications, navigation, weather, mapping, etc. Today, when a satellite breaks a part or runs out of fuel, there is no way to fix or refuel it. So you have to launch a whole new satellite at great expense. An "orbital service station" with the capacity to do those things is worth billions a year. Since Near Earth Asteroids can supply 30-50 times more fuel, plus the potential for other supplies, it makes that service station cheaper to operate. That's enough of a "first market" to bootstrap the development. Once you are up and operating, other activities become economic besides satellite servicing.