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NASA building Space Launch System with laser melting, adapts 3D printing for the skies (video)
As we know it, 3D printing is usually confined to small-scale projects like headphones. NASA is ever so slightly more ambitious. It's using a closely related technique from Concept Laser, selective laser melting, to build elements of its Space Launch System on a pace that wouldn't be feasible with traditional methods. By firing brief, exact laser pulses at metal powder, Concept Laser's CAD system creates solid metal parts that are geometrically complex but don't need to be welded together. The technique saves the money and time that would normally be spent on building many smaller pieces, but it could be even more vital for safety: having monolithic components reduces the points of failure that could bring the rocket down. We'll have a first inkling of how well laser melting works for NASA when the SLS' upper-stage J-2X engine goes through testing before the end of 2012, and the printed parts should receive their ultimate seal of approval with a first flight in 2017.
NASA preps J-2X rocket engines for second round testing, SLS creeps closer to 2017 liftoff
Forty-year old tech taking astronauts into space? Sadly, that's been the current state of our space program. But in the spirit of making one extra, giant leap for mankind, our nation's best and brightest aeronautic minds have been quietly working on a propulsion system designed to power the SLS and its Orion spacecraft payload deeper into the cosmos. NASA's been testing these next-gen J-2X rockets since last year, proving their ability to "[achieve] full flight-duration firing of 500 seconds" at sea-level and, now, in a series of second round testing, the engines will be put through their paces at high altitudes. The first of 16 planned tests are scheduled to kick off this Wednesday at the agency's Stennis Center in Mississippi and should run through to year-end. Check out the official presser after the break for a fuller breakdown of this evolution in galactic travel.
J-2X rocket passes second test, proves NASA can still have a blast (video)
NASA's next generation rocket engine has passed its second wave of experiments, blasting through a 500-second test burst. The new rocket is primed to power the agency's forthcoming Space Launch System, currently pegged for launch in 2017. The Orion spacecraft will be able to piggyback on the SLS, expanding the range of space travel, and bringing that final frontier just a little bit closer. Check out the thrust needed to launch up to 130 metric tons into space in the test video right after the break.
