There's growing debate about the future of asteroid mining, as technology keeps making new advancements.

These new developments have prompted concerns about how this process can be regulated, as it looks more likely asteroid mining will take off by the end of the decade.

Waikato University Senior Lecturer in Law Anna-Marie Brennan says there's plenty to be mined from asteroids - and it will likely reduce the environmental impacts on Earth.

"But at the same time, a lot of researchers, a lot of lawyers think we do need a monitoring mechanism for this activity."

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