NASA astronauts of the future could live in space houses built by giant 3D printed robots.
These robots would be part of Project Olympus, which hopes to build buildings on the Moon and eventually Mars.
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Importantly, they use local resources and build with lunar rocks rather than transporting heavy materials through space from Earth.
It's the brainchild of Texas-based 3D printing company Icon, which has received millions of dollars in funding from NASA.
The plans to build giant space houses out of lunar rock won a NASA contract in 2020 and are worth around $60 million.
“To explore other worlds, we need innovative new technologies adapted to these environments and our exploration needs,” NASA’s Niki Werkheiser said at the time.
“If we drive this development together with our commercial partners, we will create the capabilities we need.” Future Missions.”
Icon was the company behind NASA's simulated Mars habitat – Mars Dune Alpha.
It was used on the CHAPEA mission last year, where astronauts lived and worked in the habitat to see what it would look like.
Now Icon hopes to help NASA build space houses as part of its Artemis mission to create a permanent human presence on the moon.
Not just houses: Icon also plans designs for landing pads, roads and other pressurized buildings.
“To change the paradigm of space exploration from 'there and back' to 'stay there,' we need robust, resilient and broadly capable systems that can utilize the local resources of the Moon and other planetary bodies,” said Icon CEO Jason Ballard.
“We are pleased that our previous research and engineering has shown that such systems are indeed possible, and we look forward to now making this possibility a reality.”
“The end result of this treaty will be humanity’s first construction on another world, and that will be a very special achievement.”
The ultimate goal, according to Icon, is to create a “sustainable lunar economy” that includes “longer-term colonization of the moon.”
This could ultimately mean Mars – but for now, NASA has its sights set on the moon first for life outside Earth.
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The first phase was Artemis I in 2022, in which the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket was successfully tested unmanned.
This is followed by a manned test flight and then a manned landing on the lunar surface.
Earlier this week, NASA announced that its Artemis program had experienced significant delays.
The manned flight that was supposed to land on the moon as part of Artemis III was originally planned for 2026.
NASA ARTEMIS MISSIONS – THE SCHEDULE
The Artemis mission aims to restore human presence on the moon.
The exploration program includes a number of missions, including the establishment of a permanent lunar base.
As with all space missions, scheduled times can vary greatly – but here's what we expect…
Artemis I (2022) – Successful uncrewed test of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.
Artemis II (2026) – Planned manned test flight of SLS and the Orion spacecraft.
Artemis III (2027) – crewed landing on the lunar surface – the first American landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.
Artemis IV (2028) – Second manned lunar landing mission with Orion and spacecraft HLS, which will dock at the Lunar Gateway Station near the Moon.
Artemis V (2030) – Third crewed landing, including delivery of NASA's Lunar Terrain Vehicle.
Artemis VI (2031) – Fourth crewed landing, integrating the crew and science airlock into the Lunar Gateway space station.
But now NASA says it won't happen until mid-2027 at the earliest.
And the manned Artemis II test flight around the moon, originally planned for September 2025, is now scheduled for April 2026 at the earliest.
The delay was related to ongoing work on the heat shield of the Orion capsule, which will carry astronauts as part of the Artemis missions.
NASA's plans for human visits to Mars will be heavily influenced by the successes and failures of the Artemis program.
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The Moon – Our Nearest Neighbor Explained
This is what you need to know…
- The Moon is a natural satellite – a space-worthy body orbiting a planet
- It is Earth's only natural satellite and the fifth largest in the solar system
- The moon is 2,158 miles in diameter, about 0.27 times the diameter of Earth
- The temperatures on the moon range between minus 173 degrees Celsius and 260 degrees Celsius
- Experts believed that the moon was another planet until Nicholas Copernicus presented his theory about our solar system in 1543
- It was finally assigned a “class” after Galileo discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter in 1610
- The moon is believed to have formed about 4.51 billion years ago
- The strength of its gravitational field is about one sixth of Earth's gravity
- The Earth and Moon have “synchronous rotation,” meaning we always see the same side of the Moon – hence the term “dark side of the Moon.”
- The Moon's surface is actually dark, but appears bright in the sky due to its reflective base
- During a solar eclipse, the moon almost completely obscures the sun. Both objects appear similar in size in the sky, as the sun is both 400 times larger and further away
- The first space probe reached the moon in 1959 as part of the Soviet Union's lunar program
- The first manned orbital mission was NASA's Apollo 8 in 1968
- And the first manned moon landing took place in 1969 as part of the Apollo 11 mission