Space Zoo Patrol – Lunar / Mars Housing

By Eamon Carrig, Director of Off-Planet Systems, ICON

(a) What is the name of the technology?

Lunar and Mars housing

(b) Background

At ICON, we use a huge 9600 lb robot named Vulcan to 3D print homes and structures layer by layer on Earth. We’re also developing space-based technologies through Project Olympus, to be able to further explore the Moon and eventually Mars.

To start though, I’ll explain more about some of the work ICON is doing with NASA to explore how we will build off-planet.

To build on the Moon, we can’t take tons of wood and screws as it would be too expensive. We need to send robots that can utilize the resources found on the Moon to build. Right now we are using simulated Moon dust to turn it into buildable material. What’s super fun is we get to use lasers to melt the material and turn it into hardened rock. Someday, we hope to see a special printer we’re developing called Olympus, land on the Moon and start building roadways, launch and landing pads and eventually a habitat for astronauts and scientists to live.

Back on Earth….ICON 3D printed a habitat we call Mars Dune Alpha and used the Vulcan giant robot, material we call Lavacrete and believe it or not, a phone to control the printer! This simulated Martian habitat is at NASA’s Johnson Space Center and will house 4 crew members for 1 year missions that will aid in research for long-term missions to the Red Planet.

What does it do?

With ICON’s Vulcan construction technology, material is mixed and then transported into the printer and then comes out of a nozzle that extrudes lines forming a structure. Imagine icing a cake, but instead you take it up to 10 feet tall! The robot itself is assembled much like a Transformer. These giant towers can fold down for easy transport to a job site and then stand up and come to life to start printing.

For Project Olympus, we’re still working on the design of the printer that will deliver humanity’s first home on another world and hope you’ll keep an eye out for what we build.

By using robots, we are able to build faster, use less waste than traditional building methods, make stronger homes and structures and have design freedom that you can’t do with sticks and bricks. Curves and shapes are as easy as straight lines, and the printer doesn’t care what you tell it to print. You could print a house in the shape of a Batman symbol if you wanted to or a flower!

How does it work?

For the Vulcan and on Earth and as I mentioned, some super smart scientists developed cement-like material called Lavacrete that is mixed and then pumped into a printer to then be squeezed out to build up the walls of a home or structure layer by layer. The material is a bit wet, but can’t be too wet or dry…just right…to receive the next layer. Up, up, up the walls go and along the way reinforcements are added to keep the walls very strong and secure.

How is it better than the older technology?

3D printing is a better alternative to traditional construction because it minimizes the amount of waste that is produced on a building site. Our planet likes this! When using a 3D printer, you print what you need to the last drop, and then you stop! The average American home creates a ton of waste during the building process, so you can imagine how that adds up over time. Luckily with 3D printing, the toll that construction takes on the environment can be reduced.

Another advantage is speed. Less people and less materials are needed to operate a 3D printer and build a home which means that more homes and structures can be produced in a shorter period of time. And on earth, there are more than one BILLION people who lack shelter. That’s a lot of homes to build and robots are going to help us do that faster and more efficiently. We believe this is the future of homebuilding both on Earth and off-planet.

What classes should I take in school to work on this?

If you’re interested in space, technology, and working with 3D printers, I would recommend taking math, science, and history courses to stay up-to-date on the advancements that are being made in the world. I would also suggest taking an introduction to engineering course.

The best advice though that I can give you is to be skeptical of the old ways and curious about new ways. The best way to learn about new ways is to read and watch videos online. Follow your interests because you might be pleasantly surprised by what you learn along the way.