What is a hypothetical, profitable way that the core of earth could be mined?
We know that the inner and outer core of our planet is made up of heavy, valuable metals in high concentrations. So, what if a technologically advanced, space-faring civilization wanted to mine those resources? How would they conceivably go about it?
In this scenario, the potential miners would not care too much about the well-being of any life that resides on Earth, only about the most profitable, efficient way to mine the core. As well, the inhabitants of Earth would either be unaware of or powerless to stop any actions the aliens were prepared to take to efficiently access the core.
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1 answer
Potentially the most cost effective way to mine the core of a rocky planet would be to first hit it very hard with something that removed the crust and mantle. Once exposed, the metallic core would be accessible to mining.
However, it seems relatively counterproductive to do such a thing when the solar system is littered with metallic asteroids that provide pretty much the same resources and are already available to mine.
In fact, a lot of elements that are rare overall in the solar system have been significantly enriched in the Earth's crust due to tectonic and hydrothermal processes. The Earth's crust is probably more valuable to aliens than its core.
If you really desperately wanted to get at core material without immediately disturbing the surface, I would recommend using wormholes to extract material indirectly.
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