Wander Thoughts

The implementation of manufacturing capabilities within spacecraft is progressing with advancements in three-dimensional printing technology for use in weightless environments.

Dr. Gilles Bailet, from the James Watt School of Engineering at the University of Glasgow, has been granted a patent for a system that allows for construction during a space flight.

He hopes this technology - which has been tested on a zero-gravity research plane - could make space exploration more sustainable and decrease space debris.

Dr Bailet stated his invention, utilizing granular materials, could facilitate plans to production in space unique equipment not feasible on Earth.

"As space launch costs continue to decline, space is becoming increasingly crowded, and this trend is unsustainable," Dr Bailet stated.

Our vision is to enable the production of items directly in space through 3D printing, thereby paving the way for material recycling in space and establishing a comprehensive circular economy.

The International Space Station (ISS) was launched with its first 3D printer in 2014, and since then, research on producing items in space has been ongoing in both ground-based labs and onboard the ISS.

Dr. Bailet's prototype 3D printer employs a granulated material, differing from the filaments commonly utilized on Earth.

Despite the challenges posed by weightlessness and the vacuum in space, materials can be retrieved from a feedstock tank and rapidly delivered to the printer's nozzle, beating other methods in this regard.

The experiment was conducted in November as part of the 85th European Space Agency parabolic flight campaign with Novespace in Bordeaux, France.

The team successfully tested their device on three flights, achieving over 90 brief moments of weightlessness during intense ascents and rapid descents, reminiscent of a rollercoaster ride.

"It was truly breathtaking seeing the technology functioning flawlessly as planned," he said, referring to the tests on the aircraft that simulates weightlessness, garnering 22 seconds of microgravity every time it surges over a peak.

We are now confident that our technology can function properly in space, allowing us to complete the first space demonstration as part of our technological advancement goals.

Dr. Bailet and his colleagues are also investigating ways to integrate electronics into materials during the printing process.

"Currently, everything that is sent into Earth's orbit is built on the ground and launched into space through rocket propulsion," Dr Bailet stated.

They have narrowly restricted mass and volumes and can cause self-destruction during launch when mechanical limits are exceeded, resulting in the loss of valuable cargo.

He added that products made on Earth are "less robust in the vacuum of space," and 3D printing has been successfully done only in the pressurized modules of the ISS so far.

While Dr. Bailet's project is currently working on building components to complement spacecraft, such as radiators and antennae, it is expected that equipment could eventually be manufactured on space.

These could include solar reflectors to generate carbon-free power for transmission back to Earth, upgraded communication antennae, or research stations that can produce purer and more effective medicines.

"Crystals grown in space are often larger and more organized than those created here on Earth, making space-based chemical factories potentially capable of producing new or enhanced drugs that can be sent back to the planet's surface," he noted.

Dr. Bailet and his team are currently seeking funding to assist with the initial demonstration of their technology in space.

• Scientists have identified a doughnut-shaped structure located at the top of the Earth's outer core
• This lighter section helps agitate the liquid metal, inducing the magnetic field

Researchers have discovered a massive, ring-like formation located thousands of kilometers beneath the Earth's surface.

To gaze into the Earth's enigmatic liquid core.

Researchers discovered a region about two hundred kilometers thick, in which seismic waves move at a speed two percent slower than normal.

This doughnut-shaped structure runs parallel to the equator in a ring around the outer edge of the liquid core, and could be behind the generation of our planet's shielding magnetic field.

The researcher, Professor Hrvoje Tkalčić, stresses that 'the magnetic field is a vital component essential for sustaining life on our planet's surface.'

The surface crust, the semi-molten mantle, a liquid metal outer core, and a solid metal inner core.

When seismic activity caused by the movement of tectonic plates within the Earth's crust results in earthquakes, these generate vibrations that radiate through all the surrounding layers of the Earth.

Utilizing the comprehensive global network of seismic measurement equipment.

Researchers typically focus on the large, intense seismic waves that travel globally within the first hour after an earthquake.

However, Professor Tkalčić and his co-author Dr. Xiaolong Ma were able to identify this structure by analyzing the faint impressions left behind by waves many hours after the initial seismic event.

This method has shown that seismic waves near the poles are moving at a faster rate than those near the equator.

By comparing their results to various models of the Earth's interior, Professor Tkalčić and Dr. Ma determined that this scenario is best explained by the presence of a massive subterranean region resembling a torus or a donut-shape.

They forecast that this region is only found at low latitudes and extends parallel to the equator near the boundary between the outer core's liquid section and the mantle above.

‘We are not aware of the precise thickness of the doughnut, but we have inferred that it reaches a few hundred kilometres below the core-mantle boundary,’ Professor Tkalčić states.

Their discovery will likely have significant consequences for the research of life on Earth and other planets.

The Earth's outer core has a radius of approximately 2,160 miles (3,480 kilometers), which is marginally larger than Mars'.

Primarily composed of hot nickel and iron, rising and falling movements, driven by convection in combination with the Earth's rotation, produce vast, liquid metal columns that extend vertically, spinning in a north-south direction, similar to massive water tornadoes.

It is the swirling currents of these liquid metals that act as the dynamo, powering the Earth's magnetic field.

Since this region of the donut-shaped area has risen to the surface of the fluid outer core, it implies that it could be abundant in lighter elements such as silicon, sulfur, oxygen, hydrogen or carbon.

Professor Tkalčić notes: 'Our discoveries are significant because the low velocity within the liquid core suggests that there is a high concentration of light chemical elements in these areas, which would result in the seismic waves slowing down.

'These lighter elements, alongside temperature variations, contribute to stirring motion in the Earth's outer core.'

The Earth's magnetic field may not have originated without the stirring motion that drives the planet's interior dynamo.

Bask in the power of the sun, but beware of its capability to damage the DNA of living organisms.

This donut-shaped region might thus be a crucial part of the explanation for the development of life on Earth and a key in identifying habitable planets elsewhere.

Dr. Tkalčić concludes: 'Our results could lead to more research into the magnetic field on both Earth and other planets.'