To celebrate the arrival of the first expandable habitat to the International Space Station and the launch of the first commercial 3-D printer to space, the ASME Foundation and NASA have issued a brand new Future Engineers challenge.
The ‘Think Outside the Box’ challenge asks K-12 students to design an object for astronauts that can be printed within the bounds of the newest 3-D printer on the space station (10 cm x 10 cm x 14 cm), but can be assembled or expanded to become larger than that box.
In space exploration, scientists and engineers often strive to make more from less. Smaller rocket payloads are needed to save cargo space and fuel, while sustainable technologies are needed to reduce, reuse, and recycle what is brought to space. NASA’s Advanced Exploration Systems Division pioneers new approaches for rapidly developing prototype systems, demonstrating key capabilities, and validating operational concepts for future human missions beyond low-Earth orbit. Two demonstrations of such pioneering space technologies include the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) and Made In Space’s Additive Manufacturing Facility (AMF).
For more information about the challenge, click here.
Source: NASA
