When we think of expensive materials used in scientific endeavors, it’s easy to assume that space rocks and asteroid dust would top the list. However, these celestial substances are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the astronomical costs involved in scientific research. Let’s explore some of the priciest materials used in science, and you’ll be surprised to learn that they surpass even the most valuable treasures from the cosmos.
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission recently made headlines with its successful return of a sample from the asteroid Bennu, which took seven years and nearly 4 billion miles to accomplish. The cost of this mission was staggering, with a budget of $800 million that ultimately ballooned to around $1.16 billion, resulting in a price tag of $132 million per ounce or $4.7 million per gram of asteroid material. To put it into perspective, this is about 70,000 times the price of gold, which has consistently held a range of $1,800 to $2,000 per ounce or $60 to $70 per gram.
Surprisingly, this jaw-dropping cost pales in comparison to some other materials used in scientific research. For instance, the Apollo program brought back 842 pounds (382 kg) of lunar samples between 1969 and 1972. Adjusted for inflation, this program cost a staggering $257 billion, but lunar rocks ended up being a relative bargain, priced at $19 million per ounce or $674 thousand per gram. The Apollo missions had the added value of advancing human spaceflight technology.
NASA’s future Mars Sample Return mission aims to return 30 sample tubes, with an estimated cost of $11 billion. This would translate to a whopping $690 million per ounce or $24 million per gram, which is five times the unit cost of the Bennu samples.
But not all space rocks come with such astronomical price tags. Approximately 50 tons of free samples from the solar system rain down on Earth daily in the form of meteorites. While most burn up in the atmosphere, the ones that reach the ground are called meteorites, and most of these originate from asteroids. The price of meteorites varies based on their type. Chondrites, stony meteorites that contain round grains called chondrules, can be purchased online for as little as $15 per ounce or 50 cents per gram. Iron meteorites, which are distinguished by a dark crust and an internal pattern of long metallic crystals, cost around $50 per ounce or $1.77 per gram. Pallasites, rare stony-iron meteorites laced with olivine, can cost over $1,000 per ounce or $35 per gram.
Some meteorites have even traveled from the moon and Mars. Moon rocks, of which there are nearly 600 recognized samples, are relatively affordable, with prices averaging around $4,700 per ounce or $166 per gram. Mars rocks, of which there are about 175 identified samples, can be quite expensive, costing about $11,000 per ounce or $388 per gram.
While some meteorites are considered “free” space samples, their scientific usefulness is limited because they lack specific origins on the moon or Mars, and they quickly become contaminated upon landing on Earth.
Moving beyond celestial materials, we find that some elements and minerals are expensive not because of their rarity in the cosmos but because they’re scarce on Earth. Elements like carbon, iron, aluminum, and even mercury are relatively affordable, but others, like silver at $14 per ounce or 50 cents per gram, and gold at $1,900 per ounce or $67 per gram, command higher prices.
However, the price skyrockets when we look at extremely rare elements. Polonium-209, one of the rarest elements found in nature, costs a staggering $1.4 trillion per ounce or $49 billion per gram.
When it comes to gemstones, high-quality emeralds are ten times the price of gold, and white diamonds are a hundred times the price of gold. The rarest blue diamonds, with boron impurities, can cost as much as $550 million per ounce or $19 million per gram.
But the crown for the most expensive synthetic material goes to endohedral fullerenes, tiny carbon spheres with nitrogen atoms trapped inside. These are used in atomic clocks and can cost an astounding $4 billion per ounce or $141 million per gram.
And finally, if we want to talk about the most expensive material of all, we must mention antimatter. Although it occurs naturally, it’s exceptionally rare because it quickly annihilates when created, producing radiation. The particle accelerator at CERN can generate 10 million antiprotons per minute, but even at this rate, it would take billions of years and cost a staggering billion billion (10^18) dollars to generate an ounce, which translates to a jaw-dropping $3.5 x 10^16 dollars per gram.
In the realm of expensive scientific materials, antimatter takes the cake. Perhaps, warp drives as envisioned by Star Trek, powered by matter-antimatter annihilation, will remain a distant dream, given the astronomical cost of antimatter production.
In conclusion, while space rocks and asteroid dust are indeed valuable in scientific research, they are far from the most expensive materials used in the pursuit of knowledge. From lunar and Martian samples to extremely rare elements, gemstones, synthetic materials, and even antimatter, the cost of scientific exploration knows no bounds.
