来自美国十所大学的本科生组成的团队NASA的Artemis Generation - 为未来的月球任务设计了3D可重复使用的发布和降落垫。
该概念被称为“月球羽状减轻装置或月球垫”，其设计为使用直接在月球表面上的月球岩石材料打印3D。它重点是解决启动着陆燃烧时遇到的未解决问题的问题，从而使发动机排气的力量会导致宽松的月球灰尘踢起来并搅拌。它的新型曼陀罗式的内部几何形状可将月球尘埃带到层流中，从而降低了由月球着陆引起的原本动荡的尘埃雨的强度。
The student team even presented aresearch paper on its concept landing pad本月初，在美国航空和宇航学研究院的2021年Scitech论坛上。美国宇航局马歇尔太空飞行中心的首席技术专家约翰·丹卡尼奇（John Dankanich）表示：“当您查看该出版物时，学生和学校的多样性非常独特。参与各种不同的团队来开发解决NASA技术差距的创新解决方案具有明显的优势。”
A 3D printed lunar pad
The design was first proposed at theNASA建议写作和评估经验back in 2019, a 12 week training course organized by Dankanich. The idea was called Dust DEVILS at the time, and its top ranking won the team funding and technical support from NASA’s in-house subject matter experts. Then, in June of 2020, the team presented the final design to experts at Marshall, which secured them the funding necessary to print and test a prototype here on Earth.
Dankanich补充说：“该提案解决了一个技术痛点，因为该项目使可持续的月球勘探需要安全且可重复使用的着陆垫。该团队工作了数百小时，参与了NASA主题专家，并从概念配方转变为初步设计。然后，他们在短短的几个月内将这种设计变成了现实。”
The pad itself comprises two individual layers – a roof on which the rocket sits, and an internal volume filled with channels for redirecting exhaust. The roof features slits that enable the exhaust to disperse throughout the inner channels, where it is pumped out of vents around the edge of the launch pad. The weight of the rocket is supported by a central cone and dividers.
Testing the prototype
为了测试设计的可行性，学生们与马歇尔的专家合作，去年在德克萨斯州的斯威夫特营地打印了一个量表原型。他们使用了建筑公司开发的混凝土3D打印机ICON以及该项目的特殊基于水泥的材料。
迈克·菲斯克（Mike Fiske），一名空间制造工程师Jacobs Engineering Groupin Marshall’s Space Technology Development Branch, adds, “It has been a pleasure working with these students over the last year and helping to advance the state of the art in planetary launch and landing pads.”
菲斯克（Fiske）和学生打算在2月下旬返回斯威夫特（Swift）营地，以在高温和压力下通过真正的火箭热火测试和材料样品评估来测试原型垫。在打印过程中，将测量参数（例如温度，应变和排气流量）等参数所需的仪器集成到垫中。
Beyond just the landing pad, NASA has been playing around with the idea of in-space manufacturing for a number of years now. The space agency originally selected engineering firmCOSM Advanced Manufacturing Systems开发一个automated electron beam 3D printer早在2017年。该公司最近宣布，它已经开始致力于最终开发和建造基于DED的Metal 3D打印机，该打印机旨在支持NASA对空间内部组件维修的需求。
在其他地方，来自Technical University of Braunschweig和Laser Zentrum Hannover（LZH）最近3D打印的月球雷果在零重力下for the first time. As part of the ‘MOONRISE’ project, the team mounted a custom laser onto their ‘MIRA3D’ lunar rover and melted moondust into spherical shapes, paving the way for a flight-ready model that could enable future astronauts to fabricate long-term structures on the Moon.
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特色图显示了3D打印月球发射和着陆垫的内部几何形状。通过图标照片。
