News

IGiG scientific seminar - Prof. Kefei Zhang

18-09-2024

IGiG is pleased to invite you to a scientific seminar, which will take place in a hybrid format, on Thursday (September 19th, 2024) at 9:00 AM. Prof. Kefei Zhang (School of Environment and Spatial Informatics, China University of Mining and Technology) will present the topic "Space Resources Exploitation and Utilization - A Geodetic Perspective".

The exploration and utilization of space resources is a new wave of international interest driven by the concern of rapid depletion of energy and resources on the earth. The US Space Resource Exploration and Utilization Act in 2015 was a tipping point for the accelerated process of new space competition. Pilot effort has been made by major space powers and sample-return missions have been launched/planned so far by Japan (Hayabusa), USA(OSIRIS-Rex), ESA (Rosetta) and China (Tianwen #2). The primary purposes of extra-terrestrial mining are to search for valuable and precious and rare minerals/metals, in particular those platinum group metals (e.g. ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium and iridium) that are critically needed for the sustainable development of the society, from asteroids and minor planets that are close to the earth. geospatial science and technology, geodesy and remote sensing in particular, plays a critical role in this huge space mining systematic engineering endeavor, as is the case of surveying for large-scale engineering projects.

The current status of space mining from a geodetic and geospatial perspective and the potential targets of space resource exploration are presented first. This includes the scope (definition) of space mining, where to mine (major targets) and what to be mined, distinguished features and top technical challenges, latest development and the perceived major milestone steps/roadmap of space resources exploitation and utilization, etc. It is argued that the combination of mining and geospatial technology is a “must” in the early stage of space endeavor of resource exploration and utilization. It is concluded that, based on the current level of scientific and technological development and the potential value of known space resources, mining the near-Earth asteroids as the first step is feasible and will be one of the major trends of space resource exploration and an important part of the space economy. The priorities of space mining that need urgent attention are identified, which include but not limited to space resource exploitation, space intelligent robots related design and manufacture, prospecting and mining of space resources, safety and in-situ utilization of space resources. Finally, the latest developments and recent achievements related to space mining at China University of Mining and Technology and China in general are introduced.

Key words: space mining; space resources; space economy; near-earth asteroids; geospatial technology



Biography - Prof. Kefei Zhang is a distinguished professor and the director of the Institute of Resources and Environment and Centre of Space Mining at China University of Mining and Technology (CUMT). He is also an honorary professor at RMIT, Australia where he was the founder and inaugural director of SPACE Research Centre. He is a Fellow of the International Association of Geodesy (IAG), President of Commission VII of the International Society of Mine Surveying and past president of the International Association of Chinese Professionals in Global Positioning Systems (CPGPS). He has been instrumental in driving major initiatives and changes in the organizations he has worked with. His research is characterized with inter-disciplinary in nature that involves both fundamental and applied investigations.

Professor Zhang completed both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at Wuhan University in the late 1980s and obtained his PhD from Curtin University in 1998. He has nearly 30 years of working/studying experience in China, Australia and Europe.

As a recipient of over 40 prestigious awards, he has authored 500 scientific papers (approximately 260 of which are SCI indexed), holds over 40 patents, and serves as a chief investigator for more than 40 national and international competitive grants. The research he leads has been reported widely in world media. So far, Prof Zhang has supervised over 70 PhD/Master’s students and 30 postdoctoral fellows.

Professor Zhang’s research interest encompasses a broad spectrum, spanning from geodesy and GNSS to ubiquitous positioning, GNSS weather and climate, space resource exploitation and utilization, space situational awareness and smart underground space emergency management. He feels very fortunate to be able to delve into an area closely related to frontier and disruptive technologies that experience rapid evolution and revolution in the past two decades. To effectively deal with these (unprecedented challenges and opportunities), Prof Zhang is always looking for new and smart solutions to address grand challenges of great national and international importance and making significant impacts on the society.