21 Jan 04 U.S. Eyes Space as Possible Battleground

President Bush’s plan to expand the exploration of space parallels U.S. efforts to control the heavens for military, economic and strategic gain.

The moon is also a source of potentially unlimited energy in the form of the helium 3 isotope — a near perfect fuel source: potent, nonpolluting and causing virtually no radioactive byproduct in a fusion reactor, with a cash value of perhaps $4 billion a ton in terms of its energy equivalent in oil.

There are about 1 million tons of helium 3 on the moon, enough to power the earth for thousands of years. The equivalent of a single space shuttle load or roughly 30 tons could meet all U.S. electric power needs for a year.

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