Robot could build first Moon base from lunar materials

Ars Technica : A novel method for building a Moon base has been proposed by NASA: It involves sintering lunar dustâmdash;heating it up with the use of solar panels to cause iron nanoparticles to melt and fuse together into solid, ceramic-like blocks. A remote, human-controlled robot on the Moon’s surface would then use a three-dimensional printing system to build “bubbles” of the bound dust and assemble them into a multiroom habitat. The structure would be reminiscent of the way groups of bubbles in a bath join together to form a more solid structure, according to Tomas Rousek, one of the space architects. One major advantage of the “Sinterator system” is that it would make use of onsite materials, thereby avoiding having to import materials from Earth. In addition, because Moon dust is extremely abrasive, the system could also be used to bind the dust surrounding the base in order to prevent it from weathering and clogging the equipment.