Russia to Launch First 3D Printed Satellite

In 1957, the Soviet Union shocked the world with the launch of Sputnik 1, the first satellite launched into Earth’s orbit, and set off a decade-long space race between the two major world powers.

Later this month, Russia will launch another first: the first 3D printed satellite. The CubeSat nanosatellite will be sent to the International Space Station. According to the Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU), the probe has been handed off to the Space Rocket Corporation Energiya for delivery to the Baikonur space launch center.

On March 31, a Progress MS-2 rocket is scheduled to take the satellite to the ISS, where it will be launched into a 400-kilometer orbit during a spacewalk.

The CubeSat is a 300mm by 100mm by 100mm cube, which will orbit the planet for six months.

The satellite’s external housing was 3D printed. It also contains plastic parts and a new zirconium-ceramic battery. Sensors on the device will measure the temperature of the internal electronics. That data will be analyzed to determine if the materials can be used in future space probes.

The satellite was designed and assembled at Tomsk Polytechnic’s scientific and education center. Materials used to construct the device were developed by scientists at TPU and the Institute of Strength Physics and Materials Science.

Source: Space Daily