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Moon mining machine: Interlune unveils helium-3 harvester prototype


"The high-rate excavation needed to harvest helium-3 from the moon in large quantities has never been attempted before, let alone with high efficiency."

You may like "The high-rate excavation needed to harvest helium-3 from the moon in large quantities has never been attempted before, let alone with high efficiency," Gary Lai, Interlune co-founder and chief technology officer, said in the same statement. As a potential game-changing fuel source that could be used in a range of industries in the future, helium-3 — and getting it from the moon to Earth — has been a hot topic for years, and there have been American, Chinese, and Japanese efforts centered around mining the rare helium isotope. However, the cost of harvesting helium-3 and then delivering it for use on Earth could make it cost-prohibitive as a fuel source in the immediate future, according to Ian Crawford, professor of planetary science and astrobiology at Birkbeck, University of London.

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