Monthly Archives: June 2017

The rocket that blasted into space from New Zealand on May 25 was special. Not only was it the first to launch from a private site, it was also the first to be powered by an engine made almost entirely using 3D printing. This might not make it the first 3D-printed rocket in space that some headlines described it as, but it does highlight how seriously this manufacturing technique is being taken by the space industry.

Members of the team behind the Electron rocket at US company RocketLab say the engine was printed in 24 hours and provides efficiency and performance benefits over other systems. Theres not yet much information out there regarding the exact details of the 3D-printed components. But its likely many of them have been designed to minimise weight while maintaining their structural performance, while other components may have been optimised to provide efficient fluid flow. These advantages reducing weight and the potential for complex new designs are a large part of why 3D printing is expected to find some of its most significant applications in space exploration, with dramatic effect.

One thing the set of technologies known as additive manufacturing or 3D printing does really well is to produce highly complicated shapes. For example, lattice structures produced in exactly the right way so that they weigh less but are just as strong as similar solid components. This creates the opportunity to produce optimised, lightweight parts that were previously impossible to manufacture economically or efficiently with more traditional techniques.

Boeings microlattice is an example of taking this to the extreme, supposedly producing mechanically sound structures that are 99.9 per centair. Not all 3D printing processes can achieve this, but even weight savings of a few percent in aircraft and spacecraft can lead to major benefits through the use of less fuel.

3D printing tends to work best for the production of relatively small, intricate parts rather than large, simple structures, where the higher material and processing costs would outweigh any advantage. For example, a redesigned nozzle can enhance fuel mixing within an engine, leading to better efficiency. Increasing the surface area of a heat shield by using a patterned rather than a flat surface can mean heat is transferred away more efficiently, reducing the chances of overheating.

The techniques can also reduce the amount of material wasted in manufacturing, important because space components tend to be made from highly expensive and often rare materials. 3D printing can also produce whole systems in one go rather than from lots of assembled parts. For example, NASA used it to reduce the components in one of its rocket injectors from 115 to just two. Plus, 3D printers can easily make small numbers of a part as the space industry often needs without first creating expensive manufacturing tools.

In orbit

3D printers are also likely to find a use in space itself, where its difficult to keep large numbers of spare parts and hard to send out for replacements when youre thousands of kilometres from Earth. Theres now a 3D printer on the International Space Station so, if something breaks, engineers can send up a design for a replacement and the astronauts can print it out.

Astro printing (Barry Wilmore/NASA)

The current printer only deals with plastic so its more likely to be used for making tools or one-off replacements for low-performance parts such as door handles. But once 3D printers can more easily use other materials, were likely to see an increase in their uses. One day, people in space could produce their own food items and even biological materials. Recycling facilities could also enable broken parts to be reused to make the replacements.

Looking even further ahead, 3D printers could prove useful in building colonies. Places like the moon dont have much in the way of traditional building materials, but the European Space Agency has proven solar energy can power the production of bricks of lunar dust, which would be a good start. Researchers are now looking at how to use 3D printing to take this idea further and develop complete printed buildings on the moon.

To make many of these applications a reality, well need to research more advanced materials and processes that can manufacture components to withstand the extremely harsh conditions of space. Engineers also need to work on developing optimised designs and find ways of testing 3D printed parts to prove theyre safe. And then theres the irritating issue of gravity, or rather the lack of it. Many current processes use powders or liquids as their raw materials so were likely to need some clever tricks in order to make these function safely in a low or microgravity environment.

Some of these barriers may even require entirely new materials and techniques. But as research goes on, 3D printing is likely to be used more and more in space, even if a fully printed space vehicle isnt going to launch any time soon. The sky is no longer the limit.

Candice Majewski is a lecturer in mechanical engineering at the University of Sheffield. This article was originally published on The Conversation (www.conversation.com)

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A 3D-printed rocket engine just launched a new era of space exploration - The Independent

MINSK, 8 June (BelTA) Belarus is ready for international cooperation in peaceful space exploration. Deputy Chairman of the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus (NASB), Academician Sergei Kilin made the statement during the 60th session of the UN Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space in Vienna, the NASB press service told BelTA.

In his speech the NASB official noted that after Belarus joined the UN Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space in 2014, the country has been open and ready to join international integration and cooperation in this field. The policy in favor of peaceful exploration and uses of outer space fully conforms with Belarus' national interests and is being implemented through the relevant measures and projects in Belarus. We are proud that three cosmonauts Piotr Klimuk, Vladimir Kovalenok, and Oleg Novitsky are natives of Belarus, noted Sergei Kilin.

The official stated that the year 2017 has been declared the Year of Science in Belarus. Fundamental and applied research projects in the area of space exploration are in progress as well as the development of the accompanying technologies. For the sake of consolidating the country's scientific, technical, and industrial potentials space exploration projects and measures are stipulated by the government program on peaceful space exploration till 2020. The program includes several main directions: the development of the Belarusian system for the remote sensing of Earth using the already operational Belarusian satellites BKA and Canopus-B; the development of navigation, geodesy, and cartography projects using space technologies; the development of programs for training scientific personnel, for providing scientific, technical, organizational, and legal support for space exploration projects in Belarus.

Sergei Kilin noted that this year Belarus has started creating a new satellite for the remote sensing of Earth. It will boast a higher resolution ability (0.5m) in the panchromatic mode.

Sergei Kilin reminded that in September 2018 Belarus will host the 31st Planetary Congress of the Association of Space Explorers. Preparations are already afoot. The congress will be properly organized. We invite representatives of all the Association countries to participate in the congress, said the academician.

The 60th session of the UN Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space is scheduled to take place in Vienna, Austria on 7-16 June. The agenda includes the development of cosmonautics for peaceful purposes, space technologies as part of the UN system, long-term sustainable development of space industry, and a number of other areas.

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Belarus' drive for peaceful space exploration underlined - Belarus News (BelTA)

Every aspect of space travel is difficult, but perhaps the hardest is the act of walking in space. When astronauts exit the International Space Station, theyre exposed to the vacuum of space. The only thing thats protecting them is a pressurized suit, known as an EMU (Extravehicular Mobility Unit). And now, it appears as though were running out of them.

Weve been using spacesuits since Mercury (the first American spacewalk occurred on Gemini 4), but the current spacesuit was designed and built for the Space Shuttle program. Of course theyve been upgraded, modified, and refurbished since then, but the fact remains: These suits were originally designed to last fifteen years. Almost forty years later, theyre wearing out.

This is a huge problem, given the timeline for the International Space Station. Right now, the ISS is scheduled to be operated through the year 2024. Its likely that will be extended through the year 2028. And according to NASAs own investigations and a report from the NASA Office of the Inspector General, the current plan to maintain and support the station with the spacesuits we currently have will be a real challenge.

Astronaut David A. Wolf participates in a 2002 space walk (Image credit: NASA)

NASAs current crop of spacesuits, or EMUs, have two different components: the Pressure Garment System, or PGS, and the Primary Life Support System, or PLSS. The PGS is responsible for maintaining pressure around the astronauts (as we need a minimum of 3 pounds per square inch of oxygen for our bodies to function), while the PLSS is basically a life-support backpack. It provides temperature control, oxygen, and scrubs carbon dioxide. The problem is, there are only 11 functional PLSSs left, out of an original 18.

When the Space Shuttle program was still running, issues with existing spacesuits were less of a problem. The EMUs could be regularly returned to Earth for inspection and maintenance. But now, SpaceXs Dragon is the only vehicle that can both carry supplies to the ISS and return items to Earth. (The Russian Soyuz can as well, but the weight/cargo space on those is usually reserved for astronauts because its currently the only vehicle capable of ferrying humans to and from the ISS. And spacesuits are big.)

As a result, NASA has been pushing the limits on how long EMUs can go without maintenance. Youd think that the older the suits got, the more refurbishment theyd need to make sure theyre performing up to spec. The suits were originally authorized for a single Shuttle mission before maintenance. In 2000, that interval was extended to 1 year. That continued to increase until 2008, when the ground maintenance interval [was] extended to 6 years, with in-flight maintenance and additional ground processing, NASA OIG Analysis of EVA Office Information.

Astronaut Soichi Noguchi trains for a space walk in the Neutral Buoyancy Lab (Image credit: NASA)

Now, thats not to say were intentionally and knowingly endangering astronauts livesin August 2016, an independent review team agreed with the six-year maintenance cycle, but there were still issues: For example, due to launch failures and slips, the suits werent even being maintained on a six-year cycle. One had gone a full nine years with no ground maintenance. (Just another example of why we need more than one vehicle capable of bringing cargo like this back from the ISS.)

Of course, were currently developing new spacesuitsin fact, NASA is working on three different programs, none of which have actually produced a spacesuit thats ready to fly. The combined cost of these programs? Around $200 million.

A prototype of the Exploration Development Suit (Image credit: NASA)

The problemokay, there are many problems, but the one Im going to focus onis related to larger issues at NASA. The organization is unsure of what its doing, what its goals are, and where its going. Now, as I mentioned in my column about going to Mars, thats not all the organizations fault. Program authorizations, followed by budget cuts, mean that NASA is constantly in limbo in regard to what is actually going to happen. The organization might start developing a new spacesuit tied to a program thats been authorized, knowing that it might never make it to fruition. Thats not a great way to commit to developing new technology, and its part of the reason there are three different programs to develop new suits, rather than one dedicated program.

Its not really clear what NASA is going to do about this spacesuit issue, but I will say that the organization is incredibly good at making hardware last far beyond its original use date. The problem is that these spacesuits are already so oldwhile many people might think spacesuits are custom made for the user, theyre not. These are old, cobbled together EMUs. Astronauts swap out arms and legs to make them fit, but weve got to figure out a better solution, and fast, in order to ensure we can continue to maintain the ISS over the course of its life.

Top photo by NASA

Swapna Krishna is a freelance writer, editor and giant space/sci-fi geek.

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Space Matter: The Trouble with Spacesuits - Paste Magazine