Perhaps these can be used to spot asteroids that could be mined too

Instapundit link: NEO, NASA's next leap in planetary defense.

A spacecraft in development could be posted at an ( Earth-Sun ) LaGrangian point. From there, it may well spot hard to see hazardous asteroids early enough in time for us to do something about them.

A carbonaceous asteroid will be quite dark, and if it is the glare of the sun, it is impossible to see from the ground.

My question is this: if a carbonaceous asteroid can be located that could be captured and used for space travel, then why not? These things could weigh an enormous amount, perhaps millions of tons. If they could be harvested, it would provide a lot of fuel for deep space missions, like to Mars.





I asked GAB AI the following:

Name some potential hazardous asteroids, and characterize them in terms of their mass and dimensions please.

Apophis: This asteroid, with the potential to cause global devastation, has an estimated mass of 5,000,000,000 kg and dimensions of approximately 1,100 feet in length. Its close approach in 2029 raised concerns about a potential impact, although subsequent calculations have since ruled out a collision.

Bennu: Discovered in 1999, this near-Earth object has a mass of about 70,000,000 kg and measures around 500 meters in diameter. Its irregular shape and potential for fragmentation have made it a subject of interest for future impact assessment studies.

Ryugu: This carbonaceous asteroid, visited by the Japanese spaceprobe Hayabusa2, has a mass of approximately 4,000,000,000 kg and dimensions of roughly 900 meters in length. Its surface is covered in boulders and contains organic compounds that could potentially be used for space exploration or scientific research.





Eureka: A binary asteroid system, Eureka has a mass of around 5,000,000 kg and dimensions of approximately 230 meters in length. It orbits Mars and is considered a potential target for future human exploration or resource utilization.