Bigelow Aerospace already has it designed
Deep space mining made cheaper
University of Adelaide in cooperation with Space Tango are testing continuous-flow chemistry processes for economically viable extraction of precious metals from asteroids. Link here.
A practical space elevator
Called Spaceline, this cable made of currently known materials could be dropped down to Earth’s vicinity for relatively free movement between geostationary orbit and the Moon
Lunar settlement declaration
As good today as it was 20 years ago
The first private sector lunar landers
Loren Grush on three small companies attempting to place a lander on the moon in the next two years
What’s next in the commercial space transportation market
Dallas Bienhoff on the near term future of launch and cis-lunar infrastructure
The economics of mining water on the Moon
This white paper outlines the business case and identifies the gaps to be closed
Terraforming Mars for settlement in 50 years?
Orbital debris removal experiment scheduled for launch in 2020
One barrier to establishing a vibrant space based economy in low earth orbit and beyond is solving the increasingly alarming orbital debris problem. Tethers Unlimited, partnering with TriSept Corp., Millennium Space Systems and Rocket Lab plans to test a new technology to increase the drag of a test satellite when compared to a control payload in lower earth orbit early next year
NASA announces partnerships with industry on technologies needed to settle space
Of particular interest is work with SpaceX to study on-orbit refueling and rocket plume interaction with lunar regolith: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-announces-us-industry-partnerships-to-advance-moon-mars-technology