The Most Valuable Commodity in Our Universe

Editor’s Note: Tonight’s the night…

In just a few hours, Jeff is sitting down for his AI Emergency Meeting. He’s called it because he wants to get the word out ahead of a market-shaking event in the AI industry that’s scheduled for August 28…

And if you’re prepared, you could potentially grow your wealth in ways you never thought possible. Jeff’s even identified a small set of stocks working on the next generation of AI… Something he calls “Exegesis AI.”

He’ll dive deep into this historic shift – and how you can make sure you’re ready when it comes – tonight at 8 p.m. ET. Just go here to automatically sign up to attend.

The harsh desert planet of Arrakis, on the surface, looks entirely uninhabitable.

With no surface water or vegetation and blistering temperatures, it’s largely inhospitable to life. And living underneath the vast desert dune are gigantic sandworms, making it perilous to traverse.

What value would there be in such a place?

Artist rendering of Arrakis

What interest would there be in such a desolate planet?

And yet, it is the single most valuable planet in the universe.

Arrakis happens to be the only source of Melange in the universe – otherwise known as “the spice.” And Melange is what makes interstellar space travel possible, as well as extending life. It is the single most valuable commodity in the universe.

At least, the universe was created in the mind of Frank Herbert, the author of Dune, which is easily one of the greatest science fiction series of all time. For those interested in space exploration and planetary science, Dune is a must-read.

Dune has discovered a newfound popularity due to the recent Hollywood remakes of this science fiction classic. I suspect that popularity is about to grow even more.

Oceans of Water

As it turns out, Arrakis’ supply of Melange isn’t its only surprise.

Contained underneath vast rocky formations are massive aquifers of water, enough to terraform the entire planet. Enough to bring Arrakis to life.

There have long been loose parallels between the fictional planet of Arrakis and our own, real world, Mars – the Red Planet – in our own solar system.

Mars with its moon Phobos | Source:  NASA

Both Arrakis and Mars are desert planets with extreme temperatures. Both have no surface water. And they are both orbited by two moons. Mars’ two moons are Phobos and Deimos.

And while there is no evidence of massive sandworms or Melange on Mars, research published this week indicates that the two planets now have one more thing in common…

Massive, underground aquifers of water.

The most valuable commodity in our universe to sustain life.

Data collected and analyzed from the seismometer on NASA’s Insight Lander, shown below on the surface of Mars, indicate that there are oceans of water underneath Mars’ upper crust.

Insight Lander’s Seismometer on Surface of Mars | Source:  NASA

These aren’t small oceans of water, either. The current estimates resulting from the seismometer’s data indicate that there is enough water to cover the entire planet to a depth of 1 to 2 kilometers, about a mile deep.

While the water may have disappeared from the surface of Mars about 3 billion years ago, it hasn’t evaporated into space as many experts had predicted. It simply retreated beneath the surface, waiting patiently to be tapped to support life.

Source: Scripps Institution of Oceanography

There’s only one challenge…

The water is deep. Somewhere between 11.5 and 20 kilometers deep underneath Mars’ upper crust.

Naturally, this changes everything with regards to Mars – and our ability or inability to inhabit it.

What Should We Ship to Mars?

The Red Planet has long been humanity’s best hope of a second home – our best destination that would enable us to become a multi-planetary species.

But water has long been the question mark for Mars. We’ve long known that there is water ice located in the polar region, but it is not an ideal place to establish a Martian outpost.

This new discovery, however, opens a new world of possibilities, as these mid-crust zones containing oceans of water are thought to be all over the planet.

Many have been critical of Elon Musk and his team at SpaceX for building the Starship. What’s the purpose of a space craft so large?

Standing 165 feet tall and capable of carrying a payload between 100-150 tons, it simply dwarfs anything that has been built before.

Source:  SpaceX

This is why…

Establishing a lunar outpost or a Martian outpost requires a lot of material. The tonnage of equipment, machinery, food, backups, and, of course, water are needed to support human life.

But water is heavy and expensive to get to space. And instead of sending large quantities of water, the solution may very well be to send drilling equipment on the first mission – most likely ahead of a manned mission to Mars, so that it’s waiting for a team to arrive.

SpaceX has the technology to bring the needed equipment to Mars. And I can’t help but imagine another one of Musk’s projects, The Boring Company, which has already revolutionized tunneling and boring technology.

Prufrock 4 – In Space

Suddenly the company moniker takes on a new meaning, doesn’t it?

Not just “Musk being Musk” – this company is far from being boring. It has the technology to potentially bore tunnels on another planet…

Shown below is The Boring Company’s fourth-generation tunneling technology – Prufrock-4.

Source:  The Boring Company

It’s hard not to imagine that this technology could be used to tunnel beneath Mars’ surface to help build subterranean habitats.

And look, this all may feel like science fiction to us – and far out, decades away. But the reality is that we have the technology to make it all a reality now. And the discovery of oceans of water underneath the surface has just radically changed what’s not only possible… but is feasible starting today.

And while I know that some of us will think that this is all fanciful thinking, or that we shouldn’t be spending time elsewhere in the solar system with all the problems we have on Earth… that’s exactly the point.

It seems like a pretty good idea for humanity to have a backup…

But far more tangible than that is that this discovery is a catalyst for investment. This simply adds fuel to the fire to further ignite this accelerating space economy, and the race to both lunar and Martian outposts.

Aerospace companies both large and small will benefit, and we can certainly expect many private aerospace companies to access the public markets to fuel their own growth.

This is a major investment trend that we’ll be on top of at Brownstone Research in the coming years. We’re going to witness an explosive period of growth in the sector.

Let’s just hope we don’t find anything like the giant sandworms when we get there…