Asteroid Mining: The New Space Race Could be Worth Trillions

Many people think the United States has turned its back on the Space Race.

And it certainly looks like our leaders have thrown in the towel...

Two years ago the Obama Administration cancelled plans for another manned moon shot. The thinking goes, it's not prudent to work on extraterrestrial exploration when we've got so many problems right here at home.

Just two weeks ago, the very symbol of our commitment to explore the heavens flew for the last time.

I'm sure I'm not the only person who felt sad watching the space shuttle Discovery take its last "flight" by piggy-backing on top of a Boeing 747.

Now, with history's most-flown spacecraft mothballed in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, that's the end of the story, right?

Not so fast...

What I call the New Space Race is about to "take off" in a big way.