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Vermeer Corp. in Iowa aims to mine helium-3 on the moon, highlighting burgeoning private industry interest in space exploration.
PELLA, Iowa — With the Artemis II mission ending in success, one Iowa business is looking to take the trip into the final frontier.
Vermeer Corp. is hoping to begin mining helium on the moon. This would be a first step in private industry profiting from space exploration.
“Helium-three is one of the most, if not the most valuable commodity in the solar system,” Vermeer CEO Jason Andringa told Local 5. “It’s worth $25 million per kilogram, and it’s really not available on Earth.”
Company officials said resources are not as abundant on our planet because solar winds leak the gas from Earth’s atmosphere. However, it is available on the moon. Andringa said helium-3, specifically, is critical for success here on Earth.
“Medical imaging is one right now. Cryogenics for current computing, and quantum computing is another one,” he said. “And then the really big future potential need is that helium-3 is the ultimate fuel for nuclear fusion.”
This comes as interest in space exploration has seen a sharp rise lately, something Jolie Pelds, director of STEM innovation at the Science Center of Iowa, said is a natural evolution.
“I think that businesses are going to see the moon as an opportunity,” Pelds said. “Certainly, we’re looking at putting a space station of some sorts on the moon, and what would that take? There’s infrastructure. There’s building. There’s travel costs.”
With the first harvest of helium aimed to be harvested in four to six years, Andringa said this is becoming more of a reality, as going to the moon begins to become more accessible.
“There’s hopefully at least three American-built rockets to get stuff to the moon. Artemis is one. SpaceX’s Starship is a second. And then Blue Origin’s New Glenn is a third,” he said. “Vermeer, right here in Pella, Iowa, has been building machines that are currently used around the world. Soon, hopefully, they will be used on the moon.”
The estimated cost of the project will be clearer as the project continues.
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