Space station’s 3D printer fabricates socket wrench
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.028516
BBC : The 3D printer shipped to the International Space Station in September has already been put to good use: When astronaut Barry Wilmore needed a ratcheting socket wrench, the digital design for one was emailed to him so he could print it out and get to work. The total time required to design, transmit, and print the wrench was less than a week—much shorter than the months required to send one via supply ship. The Zero-G printer, which was built by California-based Made in Space , uses the additive manufacturing process to create objects layer by layer from a given material. The company is now experimenting with a variety of raw materials, including one similar to lunar soil.
