[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

HE-3 is being looked at in a few research instutes as a replacement for oil. It is estimated that a shuttle load of HE-3 would power the entire U.S. for 100 years. It is used in a cold fusion reactor.

It'll never happen. It'll take at least a decade to set up the infrastructure necessary to bring back HE-3 from the moon. The cost of setting it all up will easily top $1 trillion. Nothing but a pipe dream.

[RightWhale]

You are on the right track. Economic analysis of space development projects is usually primitive, and this He-3 idea falls right in line.

[Lokibob]

You are prob right, but I dont think anybody here in US is thinking less than 30 years.

Of course, when the moon lander projext was going on in the 70's, we could have put our energies toward a moon development and it would be viable now (36 years later).