Printing a Base on the MoonOkay calling all you 3D Printers out there... time to sign up for a new career... on FARSIDE BASE :P
Could 3D printers build a future moon base?(http://a57.foxnews.com/global.fncstatic.com/static/managed/img/fn2/feeds/Space.com/0/371/lunar-base-foster-partners.jpg)
QuoteThe technology behind 3D printing has allowed users to craft musical instruments and prosthetic limbs, and now European scientists are taking a serious look at printing their own moon base.
The European Space Agency (ESA) study is investigating how practical constructing a manned base on the moon only using 3D printing technology could be, given that it would rely primarily on lunar dirt for building materials.
"Terrestrial 3D printing technology has produced entire structures," Laurent Pambaguian, who heads the project for ESA, said in a statement. "Our industrial team investigated if it could similarly be employed to build a lunar habitat."
FOX NEWS (http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/02/04/could-3d-printers-build-future-moon-base/)
3-D Printed Buildings Coming Soon to a Moon Near You(http://www.wired.com/design/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Multi-dome_base_being_constructed-660x371.jpg)
A multi-dome moon base being constructed. The top left and middle domes are completed, while you can see robots in process of building the top and bottom-right domes. Visualization courtesy European Space AgencyQuoteThe European Space Agency wants to 3-D print a moon base.
One of the biggest challenges for space colonists is just how expensive (in terms of energy) it is to get supplies off of Planet Earth. Until we get a space elevator, it's going to stay that way. One solution is to send as little as possible up there. When it comes to building a moon base, couldn't we just make it out of rock? After all, the moon is already made of rocks.
The European Space Agency in partnership with Foster + Partners and Monolite UK is aiming to do exactly that.
By using the Moon's loose rocks (regolith) as a base for concrete, robots based on Monolite's D-Shape 3-D printer will be able to build up a structure that uses as many local materials as possible. The idea is that with a shell made of moon rocks to act as a shield against micro-meteors and similar hazards, the living quarters for moon colonists could be inflatable envelopes protected by these shells.
(http://www.wired.com/design/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Lunar_base_made_with_3D_printing-660x394.jpg)
Lunar base made with 3-D printing. The base consists of a cylinder that opens out into a inflatable dome. The multi-dome base seen at the top of the post is simply a collection of these modular units. Visualization courtesy European Space AgencyWIRED NEWS (http://www.wired.com/design/2013/02/3-d-printing-on-the-moon/)
Anyone with some free time to track down the original reports from ESA?
Thanks
;D
http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Technology/Building_a_lunar_base_with_3D_printing
Building a lunar base with 3D printing31 January 2013
Setting up a lunar base could be made much simpler by using a 3D printer to build it from local materials. Industrial partners including renowned architects Foster + Partners have joined with ESA to test the feasibility of 3D printing using lunar soil.
"Terrestrial 3D printing technology has produced entire structures," said Laurent Pambaguian, heading the project for ESA.
"Our industrial team investigated if it could similarly be employed to build a lunar habitat."
Foster + Partners devised a weight-bearing 'catenary' dome design with a cellular structured wall to shield against micrometeoroids and space radiation, incorporating a pressurised inflatable to shelter astronauts.
A hollow closed-cell structure – reminiscent of bird bones – provides a good combination of strength and weight.
1.5 tonne building blockThe base's design was guided in turn by the properties of 3D-printed lunar soil, with a 1.5 tonne building block produced as a demonstration.
"3D printing offers a potential means of facilitating lunar settlement with reduced logistics from Earth," added Scott Hovland of ESA's human spaceflight team.
"The new possibilities this work opens up can then be considered by international space agencies as part of the current development of a common exploration strategy."
Multi-dome base being constructed"As a practice, we are used to designing for extreme climates on Earth and exploiting the environmental benefits of using local, sustainable materials," remarked Xavier De Kestelier of Foster + Partners Specialist Modelling Group. "Our lunar habitation follows a similar logic."
The UK's Monolite supplied the D-Shape printer, with a mobile printing array of nozzles on a 6 m frame to spray a binding solution onto a sand-like building material.
D-Shape printer3D 'printouts' are built up layer by layer – the company more typically uses its printer to create sculptures and is working on artificial coral reefs to help preserve beaches from energetic sea waves.
"First, we needed to mix the simulated lunar material with magnesium oxide. This turns it into 'paper' we can print with," explained Monolite founder Enrico Dini.
"Then for our structural 'ink' we apply a binding salt which converts material to a stone-like solid.
"Our current printer builds at a rate of around 2 m per hour, while our next-generation design should attain 3.5 m per hour, completing an entire building in a week."
pictures and the rest here
http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Technology/Building_a_lunar_base_with_3D_printing
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http://techcrunch.com/2013/01/31/forget-3d-printed-buildings-the-european-space-agency-is-exploring-3d-printed-moon-bases/
Forget 3D-Printed Buildings, The European Space Agency Is Exploring 3D-Printed Moon Bases
Chris Velazco View Staff Page Follow me on twitter Chris Velazco is a mobile enthusiast and writer who studied English and Marketing at Rutgers University. Once upon a time, he was the news intern for MobileCrunch, and in between posts, he worked in wireless sales at Best Buy. After graduating, he returned to the new TechCrunch to as a full-time mobile writer. He counts advertising, running, musical theater,... ? Learn More
Thursday, January 31st, 2013
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http://www.space-travel.com/reports/Building_a_lunar_base_with_3D_printing_999.html
Building a lunar base with 3D printing
by Staff Writers
Washington DC (SPX) Feb 05, 2013
Multi-dome lunar base being constructed, based on the 3D printing concept. Once assembled, the inflated domes are covered with a layer of 3D-printed lunar regolith by robots to help protect the occupants against space radiation and micrometeoroids.
Setting up a lunar base could be made much simpler by using a 3D printer to build it from local materials. Industrial partners including renowned architects Foster + Partners have joined with ESA to test the feasibility of 3D printing using lunar soil.
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http://www.nbcnews.com/id/50677062/ns/technology_and_science-space/
How 3-D printers could build a futuristic moon colony
You can make musical instruments, even prosthetic limbs, so why not a moon base?
In this artist's rendering, a 3-D printing robot pours layer after layer of hardened lunar dirt and dust onto an inflatable dome shell, 3-D printing a lunar base.By Miriam Kramer
updated 2/2/2013 3:19:30 PM ET 2013-02-02T20:19:30
i think its brilliant.
im back ,no longer a web cripple.
got new super hero weapons.