Space Resources Program
The first program in the world focused on educating scientists, engineers, economists, entrepreneurs, and policy makers in the developing field of space resources.
Welcome
Since the 1990s, Colorado School of Mines has been a leading institution for the study of space resources and in situ resource utilization (ISRU) through its Center for Space Resources. It has also become a destination every year for space scientists and engineers, government agencies, aerospace companies, entrepreneurs, the mining and minerals industry, financial and legal experts, and policy makers to discuss all topics related to this field at the Space Resources Roundtable.
In recent years, growing interest in space resources by space agencies and the private sector has been driven by an awareness that further exploration and growth of commercial opportunities in space will require extraction of materials, production of propellants, and power generation from extraterrestrial resources for more affordable and flexible transportation, facilities construction, energy production, manufacturing of parts, and life support. The broad topic of space resources brings together many fields in which Mines has a strong presence, including remote sensing, geomechanics, mining, materials/metallurgy, robotics/automation, advanced manufacturing and construction, electrochemistry, solar and nuclear energy, and resource economics.
In this light, Mines launched a first-of-its-kind multi-disciplinary graduate program in Space Resources in 2017 to offer Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, Master of Science, and Ph.D. degrees for college graduates and professionals interested in this emerging arena. The program focuses on developing core knowledge and gaining design practices in systems for responsible exploration, extraction, and use of resources in the Solar System.
The program has had students participating from 5 continents, 24 countries, and with a variety of professional backgrounds, including aerospace, mechanical, chemical, electrical, software, materials, petroleum, and mining engineering; physics, chemistry, geology, and geophysics; from space agencies, the public sector, and economists, financial and policy analysts, lawyers, and entrepreneurs.
Why Choose Space Resources at Mines?
- Join the first program in the world focused on educating scientists, engineers, economists, entrepreneurs, and policy makers in the developing field of space resources
- Take advantage of Mines’ world-renowned expertise on terrestrial resources and energy systems and apply it beyond our planet
- Become a part of Mines long history of involvement in space resources studies and gain access to its unique facilities
- Learn the current scientific, technical, economic, policy, and legal aspects of this field from a multidisciplinary group of experts in academia, space agencies, and the private sector
- Gain design practice in In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) systems for exploration, mining, extraction, processing, manufacturing, construction, and stewardship of space and planetary resources
- Earn a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, Master of Science (non-thesis), or Ph.D. degree (all available fully online from anywhere in the world)
News
First Space Resources Investing Summit held at Mines
The Center for Space Resources, in partnership with the Mines Beck Venture Center and The CPI Group hosted the first-of-its-kind inaugural Space Resources Investing Summit on November 15, 2024. This one-day event consisted of an educational seminar by the Space...
Students win $500K in NASA Centennial Challenge
Orbital Mining Corporation, an early-stage space mining startup started by Space Resources graduate students Chris Tolton and Ken Liang, won $500,000 in NASA’s Watts on the Moon Challenge for its lunar power transmission and storage system. Together, they created the...
Space Resources team tests bioreactor on weightless parabolic flights
Space Resources Affiliate Faculty member Johan Vanneste and PhD student Alexandre Bray developed a bioreactor that incorporates gas exchange technology to create plastic feedstock for 3D printing. With funding from NASA, and in partnership with bioplastic producer...
Mines hosts XXIV Space Resources Roundtable
The 24th meeting of the Space Resources Roundtable in collaboration with the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI) and sponsored by Lunar Outpost, Honeybee Robotics, Advanced Space, CisLunar Industries, Karman+, Polimak, Space Robotics Research Group at University of...