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Lecture

Additive Manufacturing: Dr. Tommaso Ghidini

Description

This lecture, presented by Dr. Tommaso Ghidini from the European Space Agency, delves into the world of additive manufacturing, focusing on its applications on Earth, in orbit, and on other planets. The lecture covers the challenges and opportunities of using 3D printing technologies for space hardware, including propulsion systems, structures, electrical components, optics, and demisability. Dr. Ghidini also discusses the European Space Agency's efforts in standardizing additive manufacturing processes and materials for space applications, as well as the future prospects of bioprinting for regenerative medicine in space.

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Related concepts (32)

European Space Agency

The European Space Agency is an intergovernmental organisation of 22 member states dedicated to the exploration of space. Established in 1975 and headquartered in Paris, ESA has a worldwide staff of about 2,200, as of 2018, and an annual budget of about €7.08 billion, ESA's space flight programme includes human spaceflight (mainly through participation in the International Space Station program); the launch and operation of uncrewed exploration missions to other planets (such as Mars) and the Moon; Earth observation, science and telecommunication; designing launch vehicles; and maintaining a major spaceport, the Guiana Space Centre at Kourou (French Guiana), France.

Canadian Space Agency

The Canadian Space Agency (CSA; Agence spatiale canadienne, ASC) is the national space agency of Canada, established in 1990 by the Canadian Space Agency Act. The president is Lisa Campbell, who took the position on September 3, 2020. The agency is responsible to the minister of innovation, science and industry. The CSA's headquarters are located at the John H. Chapman Space Centre in Longueuil, Quebec. The agency also has offices in Ottawa, Ontario, and small liaison offices in Houston; Washington, D.C.

3D printing

3D printing or additive manufacturing is the construction of a three-dimensional object from a CAD model or a digital 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is deposited, joined or solidified under computer control, with material being added together (such as plastics, liquids or powder grains being fused), typically layer by layer. In the 1980s, 3D printing techniques were considered suitable only for the production of functional or aesthetic prototypes, and a more appropriate term for it at the time was rapid prototyping.

Laser propulsion

Laser propulsion is a form of beam-powered propulsion where the energy source is a remote (usually ground-based) laser system and separate from the reaction mass. This form of propulsion differs from a conventional chemical rocket where both energy and reaction mass come from the solid or liquid propellants carried on board the vehicle. The basic concepts underlying a photon-propelled "sail" propulsion system were developed by Eugene Sanger and the Hungarian physicist György Marx.

Propulsion

Propulsion is the generation of force by any combination of pushing or pulling to modify the translational motion of an object, which is typically a rigid body (or an articulated rigid body) but may also concern a fluid. The term is derived from two Latin words: pro, meaning before or forward; and pellere, meaning to drive. A propulsion system consists of a source of mechanical power, and a propulsor (means of converting this power into propulsive force).

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