NASA 3D Printing Technique Creates Metal Spacecraft Parts

Researchers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory are implementing a printing process that transitions from one metal or alloy to another in a single object. JPL scientists have been developing a technique to address this problem since 2010. An effort to improve the methods of combining parts made of different materials in NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory mission inspired a project to 3D print components with multiple alloy compositions.

from NASA Tech Briefs – Nasa Tech Briefs http://ift.tt/1kYaihJ
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DARPA Teams With Industry to Create Spaceplane

DARPA has created an Experimental Spaceplane (XS-1) to create a new paradigm for more routine, responsive, and affordable space operations. In an important step toward that goal, DARPA has awarded prime contracts for Phase 1 of XS-1 to three companies: The Boeing Company (working with Blue Origin, LLC), Masten Space Systems (working with XCOR Aerospace), and Northrop Grumman Corporation (working with Virgin Galactic).

from NASA Tech Briefs – Nasa Tech Briefs http://ift.tt/1ohciwB
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