NASA Testing Method Of 3D Printing on the Moon By Melting Moon Regolith

[Brian_Krassenstein]

3D printing's prospects are out of this world -- literally. Additive manufacturing is already being tested out in space thanks to NASA and Made in Space's 3D printing attempts on the International Space Station now. A major application that remains a little farther off is to ultimately use 3D printing to create structures on non-terrestrial bodies like the moon, other planets, and even asteroids. Researchers from NASA's Kennedy Space Center have been working to develop solutions to materials issues, and recently presented initial findings on the potential for using in-situ materials like basalt for 3D printing. Check out details on this research and its potential future applications: http://3dprint.com/30302/3d-printing-on-moon-mars/


Below is a photo (courtesy Abigale Harrison) of 3D printed regolith:

[Feign]

It looks like a pile of, er, yeah... It looks like they have a long way to go.

Melting basalt has to take a absurd amount of energy though, and the stuff isn't as dry as it looks, the moon apparently has a bit of water ice among other things mixed into the regolith which would probably throw off the process just a bit when it turns to vapor.

Not to mention that basalt is the kind of stuff you generally want to use for sandpaper, it grinds up metal badly if it gets into machenery, actually using it in a manufacturing process has got to be a nightmare.