ISS - International Space Station patch.
With a 3D printer, the astronauts on the International Space Station could make some kind of wrench the design was sent to them from Earth.
Image Above: Astronaut Butch Wilmore, commander of the ISS, proudly brandishes his new tool. Image Credit: NASA.
This is the first time that the crew was able to cobble together a tool that was missing with a 3D printer made especially for weightlessness. The spanner was designed by Made in Space, the California-based company that created the printer. The latter had already been used in the space station but only on drawings and uploaded tested first on Earth.
This time, the spanner has been designed and tested on Earth and his drawing emailed to the printer, who made subject to some 4 hours, the company said in a statement. "The spanner was designed with removable parts without need of other materials," said a statement from the company.
Image Above: Made In Space's 3D printer, specially designed for use in microgravity on the International Space Station (ISS). Image Credit: NASA.
A prototype has been printed in a California lab and sent to NASA for her to inspect before the drawing goes to the ISS. The entire process, from design to execution, took less than a week.
The spanner like any other printed objects in the station, will be brought to Earth to be compared with printed objects normally.
For more information about the International Space Station (ISS), visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html
Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Orbiter.ch Aerospace.
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