The Truth About the Most Expensive Thing in the Universe

What’s the most expensive thing you can think of? A company? A giant object made of diamonds? Well, we’re about to go one step further outside of the box. Rather than think about the most expensive object, what is the most expensive concept? Below, we present a breakdown of three of the universe’s most expensive things.

Number Three: Oil.

There is currently $5 trillion in circulation around the world. However, this doesn’t mean that the ceiling for what something is worth stops at $5 trillion. The world’s most valuable company is oil company Saudi Aramco, with a value of $30 trillion, including all assets. Though it’s technically the most expensive company, the reason it’s so expensive is because of what it provides: oil. You’ll see a trend begin here that continues throughout the post – the most expensive things in the universe are all potential sources of energy and life.

Number Two: Antimatter.

In case you need a refresher, antimatter particles are the opposite of matter, or what makes up most of our world. For example, a particle of antihydrogen would contain atoms made of antiprotons, antineutrons and positrons. In 1999, NASA predicted that a single gram of antimatter would cost up to $65 trillion. To put that in perspective, a paperclip weighs about a gram as well.

So why is antimatter so valuable? Well, when a particle of antimatter comes into contact with its analogous matter, the two particles annihilate each other. This makes it an incredible source of energy, as antimatter has a 100% mass to energy rate of conversion. As a comparison, nuclear fusion provides less than a one percent rate of mass to energy conversion. If we could collect antimatter and harness its energy, there is no telling what the potential of our planet could hold.

Number One: The Biosphere.

The biosphere has been quoted as being worth up to $300 quadrillion. And yes, there is a logical way to arrive at that number! A project in 1990 called Biosphere 2 was designed to test out the idea that we can create a habitable biosphere independent of our own and isolated from the rest of the world. The project cost $200 million, lasted only six months and was only able to sustain eight people. Projecting that cost to today’s population and inflation, creating a habitable and sustainable biosphere would cost at least $300 quadrillion.