3D Printing On Demand Now Orbiting Earth

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

Hawthorne-based SpaceX took the first 3D printer into space, where NASA hopes astronauts will one day be able to print replacement parts on long-distance missions.

“We could go from having a part designed on the ground to printed in orbit within an hour to two from start to finish,” NASA’s 3D printing project manager Niki Werkheiser says.

The Los Angeles Daily News reports the 3D printer for the International Space Station has been modified to function in zero-gravity environments. Researchers hope to show a 3D printer can work normally in space and produce parts equitable to those printed on the ground.

The company behind the project, Made in Space, was founded by a group of 3D design software engineers, astronauts, and tech entrepreneurs working in the research park at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Northern California.

“Making the printer safe enough to pass NASA’s stringent safety requirements has become one of our key patented technologies,” Made in Space business development engineer Brad Kohlenberg says. “It still hasn’t been made a big deal on Earth yet but all 3D printers off-gas small amounts of toxic gases and harmful nano particles; on the space station that matters quite a bit.”

In a NASA post, Jessica Eagan of the International Space Station Program Science Office, explains that the process extrudes heated plastic, which then builds layer upon layer to create three-dimensional objects. “Testing this on the station is the first step toward creating a working ‘machine shop’ in space. This capability may decrease cost and risk on the station, and will be essential for future missions far from Earth since it will create an on-demand supply chain for needed tools and parts.”