Jack Wolfsohn | Head Editor
October 14, 2022
Climate change is going to sink cities, dry up rivers, and displace nearly 1.2 billion people by 2050. To combat climate change, the world needs to switch to at least zero-emission energy practices. There’s an extremely strong case for Nuclear power, but just recently, a mineral on the moon was found by China that may contain the best short-term solution until massive infrastructure can be built: Helium-3.
Since its discovery in 1939, Helium-3 has only been found in absolutely tiny quantities. The reason it even exists on the moon is because of solar wind depositing the isotope over billions of years.
What makes Helium-3 such a great energy source stems from it being the only stable isotope of any element with more protons than neutrons. A nuclear reaction between Helium-3 and Deuterium (a hydrogen isotope used in nuclear fusion) creates approximately 165-megawatt hours (MWh) of power per gram of Helium-3. A megawatt hour is equal to 1,000 kilowatts of electricity being used for an hour.
As an example, New York uses around 11,000 MWh per day. So the amount of Helium-3 needed to power the entire city for 24 hours is only 66 grams. Additionally, only 25 tons of Helium-3 is needed to power the whole USA for an entire year.
Normally, nuclear reactions create radioactive waste, but Helium-3, when broken down, creates no radioactive particles. No storing process or clean-up is needed.
According to the research, there are about 1.1 million metric tons of Helium-3 on the moon. Definitely enough for the whole planet considering the US will only use 25 a year.
Senior Kyle Desrosiers said, “It should obviously be used to help with the energy crisis, but it’s hard to say if it’s going to be used that way. People are trying to make money off of it above all else.”
China will likely gatekeep large quantities of Helium-3 from the US and other western countries, and we would keep it from them as well. Additionally, since the price is so high, any country buying from another will cost those buying to be at a disadvantage going forward in future deals.
Senior Trevor Novak said, “The US needs to be matching foreign nations in what actions they are taking. So if lunar mining is the future, we can’t be late to the party.”
It’s risky for the entire world if the US gets too invested into mining the moon and planning to monopolize its resources. The last time an opportunity for energy like this emerged, the Middle East was stripped of its oil, and the dollar became backed by oil. There is a chance that in the future, the dollar becomes backed by Helium-3 prices and sales.
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