Orbital ORB-3 Launch to Include Planetary Resources A3 Technology Demonstrator Spacecraft, SpaceRef Business “Today’s launch of an Orbital Sciences Corporation Antares rocket with the Cygnus cargo spacecraft to resupply the International Space Station will include the first hardware from commercial startup Planetary Resources.”

3D Systems and Planetary Resources Announce Investment and Collaboration, SpaceRef Business “3D Systems and Planetary Resources, Inc. today announced that 3D Systems has joined Planetary Resources’ core group of investors and will be a collaborative partner in assisting Planetary Resources to develop and manufacture components of its ARKYD Series of spacecraft using its advanced 3D printing and digital manufacturing solutions.” “We are excited to work very closely with Planetary Resources’ […]

ARKYD: A Space Telescope for Everyone, Planetary Resources Marc’s note: After appearing to stall late last week, the Planetary Resources Kickstarter campaign to raise $1 million for the E/PO ARKYD telescope has achieved its initial goal and was pushed over the top overnight. Now with 10 days left they will try and reach their stretch goal of $2 million which they’ll “invest the additional funds to enhance the ARKYD space […]

Planetary Resources Hires Former White House Director of Space Policy, Planetary Resources “Planetary Resources, Inc., the asteroid mining company, announced today the hiring of Peter Marquez to lead the company’s global engagement. Marquez will engage with key U.S. government entities on matters of strategic domestic and global interest to assist Planetary Resources in achieving its long-term mission. The company’s objective is to mine near-Earth asteroids using innovative and cost-effective robotic […]

Brand and Product Marketing via Crowdfunding, SpaceRef Business “Crowdfunding is becoming a familiar word for those who need to fund a project or product. In the case of a startup, it can replace the role of the angel investor to get the initial funding. However the scope of what is being funded, and why, is evolving as startups use this collective effort for brand recognition and marketing a specific project […]

Planetary Resources Embarks on First Crowdfunded Space Telescope, Planetary Resources “Planetary Resources, Inc., the asteroid mining company, has launched a campaign for the world’s first crowdfunded space telescope to provide unprecedented public access to space and place the most advanced exploration technology into the hands of students, scientists and a new generation of citizen explorers.” Planetary Resources Falls Back on Kickstarter For Funding, earlier post (2012) “At the ISDC conference […]

Asteroid miners hunt for platinum, leave all common sense in glovebox, Register “But back to PGMs. We have something that we know the demand for, in the short term at least, is relatively insensitive to price. An increase in supply of as little as 250,000 ounces – seven metric tons – will drive the price down by a quarter. So instead of the $500m they were hoping for, our lads […]

Back Us On Kickstarter, Planetary Resources “To offer you a chance to actually get involved, we’ve been tossing around the idea of adding additional capacity in our production run, and either offering you access to a portion of our of our orbiting spacecraft – or – if there’s enough demand, actually build you an additional Space Telescope for your own use. We’d probably do this thru a Kickstarter campaign, but […]

Keith’s note: On 8 June 2012 I got an email update from Planetary Resources. This portion got my attention: “Here’s a quick summary of the highlights: . Over 70 Million US television viewers . 5 Billion Unique Monthly visitors with front page headlines on Huffington Post, Drudge Report, Twitter, CNN.com, Yahoo, Washington Post …” Hmm. “5 Billion Unique Monthly visitors”. That’s more traffic than Google gets and represents more than […]

Ask an Expert: Explorer’s lessons for asteroid miners, USA Today “No dummies, the firm has some NASA funding already for their development, reports Keith Cowing of NASAWatch. And a recent Forbes pieces hints that they may be stalking the remote-sensing industry with these small telescopes, ones that might eyeball our planet with even more ease than they spot passing asteroids.” How Billionaire Asteroid Miners Make Money — Without Mining Asteroids, […]