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Image source: NASA ICON PROJECT OLYMPUS
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NASA funds ICON to launch the PROJECT OLYMPUS construction system for the Moon
NASA funds ICON to launch PROJECT OLYMPUS construction system for the Moon
Advanced building technologies developer includes robotics, software and building materials ICON announced that it has been awarded a government small business innovation research contract that includes funding from NASA to begin research and development of a system of space-based construction that could support future exploration of the Moon. ICON will also dedicate a division of the company to focus on space. NASA’s investment in space age technologies like this can not only help advance humanity’s future in space, but also solve very real and vexing problems we face on Earth.
NASA has signaled that, through the Artemis program, the Moon will be the first off-Earth site for sustainable surface exploration. Building a sustainable presence on the Moon requires more than rockets. For a permanent lunar presence to exist, it will be necessary to build robust structures on the Moon that provide better thermal, radiation and micrometeorite protection than can be provided by inflatable or metal habitats. From runways to habitats, these collective efforts are driven by the need to make humanity a space civilization.
ICON, known for its advanced 3D printing technology for the construction of houses on Earth, has obtained a STRATFI contract to increase strategic funds SBIR through the Open Topic process managed by AFVentures to advance the development of its 3D printing technology. , advanced materials and software. The SBIR is a competitive program that encourages small national businesses to participate in Federal Research, Research and Development (which has commercialization potential. Through NASA’s support under the Air Force SBIR, ICON will continue to mature applications outside from Earth for possible use for sustainable lunar missions and to develop technology with shared agency benefits for Earth and space.
In partnership with NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, ICON will test a lunar soil simulant with various processing and printing technologies. The tests will help design, develop and demonstrate prototype elements for a possible future large-scale additive building system that could print infrastructure on the Moon. The new partnership builds on ICON technology demonstrated during NASA’s 3D Printed Habitat Challenge in 2018.
ICON has hired two award-winning architecture firms as partners for this audacious project: BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, recognized for its iconic international architecture, and SEArch + (Space Exploration Architecture), a company recognized globally for its innovation ‘focused on the human ‘designs for space exploration. SEArch + has more than a decade of partnership with NASA’s Johnson Space Center Human Habitability Division, Langley Research Center, Ames Research Center, and leading aerospace corporations, and BIG has worked on multiple concepts for the Moon and Mars in recent years.
For ICON, the journey to transform construction began with the delivery of the first permitted 3D printed home in the US in 2018. Since then, the team has begun construction of the world’s first 3D printed home community. in Mexico in association with Housing. The non-profit organization, New Story, completed a series of homes serving the chronically homeless in Austin, TX with Mobile Loaves & Fishes at Community First. Village and forged a partnership with the Defense Innovation Unit and the United States Marine Corps to train Marines to operate their technology and complete a field demonstration print at Camp Pendleton. In 2020, the Austin-based technology company will begin construction on additional projects, including a multi-unit conventional housing project in Texas, while continuing to provide decent and sturdy homes for those in need.
Source : Institute for Strategic Research, SteelGuru
