A new federal law that allows U.S. companies to obtain resources from space has one University of Arizona graduate looking at the possibilities in our solar system.
The Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act opens the door for private exploration ventures to collect resources from asteroids, the Moon and other planets.
Among the target resources is water to help further space exploration.
UA alumnus Chris Lewicki is president of Planetary Resources of Redmond, Washington. He said the law allows companies like his to keep whatever they acquire.
“Taking water from asteroids and turning it into rocket fuel can help us really extend our reach of humanity and our economy into space," Lewicki said.
Lewicki’s company has started to launch spacecraft from the International Space Station. He estimates that by 2019, his company will make its first venture to explore a near-Earth asteroid.
“This is how something turns from science fiction into science fact and we’re right in the middle of it now,” he said.