NASA has expressed interest in exploring the possibility of mining asteroids for valuable resources such as water, rare metals, and minerals. This interest is primarily driven by the potential for asteroids to serve as valuable resources for future space missions, including those aimed at sustaining human presence in space, such as lunar or Martian colonies.

NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission, for example, successfully collected a sample from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu in 2020. While the primary goal of this mission was scientific research, it provided valuable insights into the techniques and technologies required for asteroid sample collection.

Planetary Resources, a private company, was also involved in asteroid mining research and development but faced financial challenges and underwent changes. Other private companies have also expressed interest in asteroid mining.

However, the development and execution of asteroid mining projects remain complex and are still in the early stages. It involves significant technological, legal, and logistical challenges. Legal frameworks for asteroid mining in outer space are also a subject of international debate.