NASA's 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge

NASA's 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge

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NASA's 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge seeks to foster development of new technologies to additively manufacture a habitat using local indigenous materials with, or without, recyclable materials, in space and on Earth.

In other words, we want America's best and brightest to help us figure out how to build a house on Mars, using advanced 3D printing technology in the most efficient and sustainable way possible. Sound like something you'd see in a movie? Maybe. But, Mars is our next frontier. And the technologies we develop can have applications today, and help advance America's leadership in technology and innovation.

Rules etc available at link. Note there are restrictions on non-US teams.

Any takers?

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Hey NASA i've got a challenge for you...
Fix this Planet, before "terror-forming" others.
Can you imagine a nice row of Barrat hutches on the red planet.
White Picket Fences, mastic asphalt, all over the place...

If you could make some bubble forming foam, from mars materials, things could be interesting



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/13/2017 12:53PM by MechaBits.

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MechaBits
Fix this Planet

Yeah, good point, but really it is people, not the planet, that need fixing

I'm not sure there is a politically acceptable way to fix people, so engineers are called in to provide the "techno-fix". The iPhone is the opiate of the masses. Might keep us distracted until the Big One hits.

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The biggest mistake mankind made, was to settle down and leave the Nomad lifestyle behind. Now you want to make the same mistake on Mars?
Mankind is only able to survive the climate change we are facing, when we are able to move.
Let Mr. Trump build his Mexican wall. One day, when North America is under Ice and Snow, his Grandchilds will stand at the wall and bang at the gate, trying to pass it.

Elon Musk's idea (and also other people) is that we should create a self-sustaining colony on Mars as a "backup" civ for Earth, should an extinction event occur to civilization on Earth (large asteroid or something). (This assumes that only Earth is affected, some events could affect both Earth and Mars). Creating any sort of human habitat on Mars presents severe technical challenges, I am not sure that is ever going to practical. Terraforming is really out of the question, so any colony would have to be supported by Earth. Even a habitat supported by Earth is pretty difficult, considering the trip cost.

But apart from the theory, Musk and others are committed to actually trying it. 3D printing is if you like our "most advanced technology". So I think it would be a good test to see if that technology would actually be useful off-planet. I wonder if Solar sintering [www.markuskayser.com] would be appropriate.

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I wonder if Solar sintering [www.markuskayser.com] would be appropriate.

What a stunningly brilliant idea! It takes a certain amount of courage to take mechanical high-tech into a desert though.

Highly doubt there's enough sunlight on Mars for that to be an option.

My guess is regular energy (solar or nuclear) + lasers is the more efficient option.

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JamesK

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I wonder if Solar sintering [www.markuskayser.com] would be appropriate.

What a stunningly brilliant idea! It takes a certain amount of courage to take mechanical high-tech into a desert though.

... this was done and posted in the forum some +5 years ago with a battery powered printer and a big Fresnel-lens, to melt sand.

Worked, but the spot was some mm to cm wide, so not the fine details as with laser-sintering.

But I know too, that some clinics in Afrika uses focussed solar light focussed/injected into glass fibers for cutting (and coagulating) instead of scalpels ... so there is some finer focussing possible too

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Viktor
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Aufruf zum Projekt "Müll-freie Meere" - [reprap.org] -- Deutsche Facebook-Gruppe - [www.facebook.com]

Call for the project "garbage-free seas" - [reprap.org]

... found the link to the "solar sand-printer" -- [boingboing.net]

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Viktor
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Aufruf zum Projekt "Müll-freie Meere" - [reprap.org] -- Deutsche Facebook-Gruppe - [www.facebook.com]

Call for the project "garbage-free seas" - [reprap.org]

and an other Sand-3D-Printer

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Gruß
Siggi

Geeetech I3 Pro B 8mm Acryl - Mega 2560 - Ramps 1.4 - TMC2100 - MK42 - E3DV6-Clone 0,4 - SSR 522-1dd60-40 (A-Senco) - Marlin RC8Bugfix 26.12.2016 - Repetier Host - Windows 7 64 Bit
Vulcanus mit Linearschienen
Anycubic i3 Mega

A swarm of self replicating/flocking termites(ones that can produce material, rather than move blocks), could make a nice underground base, maybe there is already caves they could use?
Maybe the Termites & Roaches are still there?
But when this planet has a major malfunction time to kiss it all goodbye.
Maybe Earth will self correct(with a lot of help from humans) wipe out humans & start over.

[en.wikipedia.org]



[www.festo.com]
Maybe they just need some magnifying fresnel glasses(or advanced 3D printed lenses) they can sinter with.

If it could also do this it would be helpful [www.extremetech.com]

Edited 6 time(s). Last edit at 01/16/2017 04:02AM by MechaBits.

Pity they couldnt make huge ice domes(or with some other goop instead of water), with an inflatable solar balloon as the inside skin....it's below freezing most of the time but your a bit screwed when the temp warms up, unless some other resin/polymer could be produced.

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MechaBits
Pity they couldnt make huge ice domes(or with some other goop instead of water), with an inflatable solar balloon as the inside skin....it's below freezing most of the time but your a bit screwed when the temp warms up, unless some other resin/polymer could be produced.

I believe there is a concept whereby the walls could be made with either ice or ice+additives and protected by outer coatings which would prevent evaporation.

But you would need something to keep it solid/cold when temps rise above 0.

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MechaBits
But you would need something to keep it solid/cold when temps rise above 0.

Unless you build it near the equator (summer temperatures of +20 C) the temps on Mars stay subzero year-round. Hence it won't melt.

duh, I thought 20 might be a peak average once a day,
the ability to build domes as quick and as simply as this would be amazing...
[www.youtube.com]
not much use in the wind as is but with a modified method/material who knows.

Solar insolation on Mars in a favourable location is about 600W/m2, about half that of Earth. Since payload mass is an issue, solar has better kW/tonne ratio than nuclear. E.g. 120 kWh solar is about a tonne, a 120kWh nuclear is something like 3.5 tonnes. Unfortunately, dust storms can last months, so I would not rely on solar.

Any habitat on Mars needs to have good radiation shielding [www.space.com]. "The magnetic field generated by electric currents in the Earth’s liquid iron core extends far into space, shielding the planet from 99.9 percent of harmful radiation. The Earth’s atmosphere provides additional protection, equal to a slab of metal about 3 feet (1 meter) thick." With no magnetosphere and negligible atmosphere, the surface of Mars is bathed in radiation. Equivalent protection is given by 5 meters of Martian soil, which is a lot! There was a suggestion that lava tubes on Mars might make a good habitat.

Going to Mars sounds glamorous, but I think early settlers will be disappointed to find they are living most of the time buried underground.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/18/2017 06:23AM by bobc.

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So it would make sense to drill a deep hole, put some explosives in at and hope the blast will compress the surrounding soil and melt the surface of the new born cave.

With the advances in bio printing, I wonder if it could be of use in buildings(modified) Thick regenerative mutant electric eel skin, interesting to see..grow another woom, grow some dinosaur bones,


Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/20/2017 03:54AM by MechaBits.

One day Earth will be like Mars so stay put and start building.

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MechaBits
One day Earth will be like Mars so stay put and start building.

It won't be long, 'cause the earth magnet field turns it's polarity soon as they say. There will be a period where it isn't defined and won't protect us against solar storms.
Then we all live in a yellow submarine

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/22/2017 01:18PM by o_lampe.

Little does Elon Musk know...I 3D printed a rocket, which can do the one way Trip, on 3 table spoons of baking soda 2 mentoes and a bottle of coke, but it only has a small payload capacity, enough for my 2 brave autonomous astrobugs who will colonize long before Musk sends his crew of Dumb ass millionaires, the astrobugs are currently in training somewhere in the Mojave,

First Stop the Moon

[www.designboom.com]

As discussed in the mini-series "Mars" a behind the scenes program on Elon's plan.

Radiation shielding can be avoided by moving underground but once an accident happened causing serious damage, H&S and money arguments would result in an end to the program.