US space agency NASA is planning to
launch a 3D printer into space next year to help astronauts manufacture spare parts
and tools in zero gravity. It will be the first time a 3D printer has been used
in space and could help reduce the costs of future missions.
The device will have to withstand
lift-off vibrations and operate safely in an enclosed space station
environment.
NASA has chosen technology start-up
Made in Space to make the microwave oven-sized printer.
"Imagine an astronaut needing
to make a life-or-death repair on the International Space Station," said
Aaron Kemmer, the company's chief executive.
"Rather than hoping that the
necessary parts and tools are on the station already, what if the parts could
be 3D printed when they needed them?"
In 1970, Apollo 13 astronauts had to
cobble together a home-made carbon dioxide filter using a plastic bag, a manual
cover and gaffer tape.
A 3D printer might have solved the
problem in minutes.
"If you want to be adaptable,
you have to be able to design and manufacture on the fly, and that's where 3D
printing in space comes in,'' said Dave Korsmeyer, director of engineering at
NASA's Ames Research Center.
NASA is also experimenting with 3D
printing small satellites that could be launched from the International Space
Station and then transmit data to earth. Additive manufacturing, as 3D printing
is also known, builds up objects layer by layer, commonly using polymer
materials. But laser-melted titanium and nickel-chromium powders are now being
used to build much stronger components.
In August, NASA successfully tested a metal 3D
printed rocket component as part of its drive to reduce the costs of space
exploration.
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