Nearly a decade ago, the United States Congress passed a law that allows private American space companies the rights to resources they mine on celestial bodies, including the moon. Now, there’s a private venture that says it intends to do just that.

Founded by a pair of former executives from Blue Origin – the space company founded by Jeff Bezos – and an Apollo astronaut, the new business, Interlune, announced itself publicly this week by saying it has raised $US18 million ($27 million) and is developing the technology to harvest and bring materials back from the moon.

Washington Post