Review on quarrying methods suitable for space mining missions

In this review paper, existing mining techniques and technologies are scrutinized for the purpose of superterrestrial use. Different aspects and challenges of a space mining mission are examined in light of the viable iron-nickel quarry operation on M-Type (metallic) asteroids. The research and findings presented in this work cover different disciplines of science and engineering, including Geology, Rock Engineering, Space Exploration, and Explosives Engineering. The particular focus of this study is on the application of shaped charge explosives in military munitions, oil well perforations, tunneling, open-pit mines, and bolder fracturing that could be deployed in asteroid mining missions. The central proposal of this research is a methodology to carve out a solid iron-nickel quarry slab, properly shaped to enter Earth's atmosphere and land independently, without spacecraft or landing capsule, thus offering an economically feasible solution to space mining.