A key role for NASA will be played by Austin companies as they seek to establish a base camp on lunar surface.
NASA has awarded $57.2 Million to Icon, an Austin-based construction firm, for the development of a lunar construction system.
Jason Ballard co-founded Icon with the aim of reimagining construction using its Vulcan 3D printers. The company says its 3D printing technology is faster, less expensive and has a wider range of options than traditional construction. The startup has already built dozens of homes and structures on Earth — it printed its first home using 3D technology in 2018 — and has worked with NASA previously.
Ballard stated that the first ever construction projects on another planet will be managed out of Austin, Texas’ mission control. This is quite wild. “We are hopeful that Texas will be proud of us.”
The Icon contract is part of NASA’s Artemis program, which is intended to return astronauts to the moon by 2024, including the first woman. Icon’s high-tech hardware and software will accompany Icon on a flight to the moon in a lunar gravity simulator flight. This flight will have the purpose of building the first construction ever built on a celestial object. Our ultimate goal is to create a structure astronauts can live in and work in.
Artemis aims to establish a permanent human presence on the Moon by 2028. It also conducts research on the lunar surface. The program will also lay the foundation for private companies that can build a moon economy. Artemis also hopes to take humanity one step closer to Mars.
Icon’s construction system for the mission, called Olympus, will work similarly to the 3D printers on Earth, using computer-aided design to create three-dimensional objects through a layering method. Moon material will be used instead of concrete to save money and reduce the amount of materials required to ship. Concrete is also water-based so it cannot be used on the moon.
Ballard said, “We have the strong dedication to what’s called ISR (in-situ resource utilization) or, as they would say in East Texas: living off the land.”
More:Icon, a company based in Austin, has just launched a new project that simulates life on Mars. This will pave the way for NASA to make its ‘next big leap’
“We just hope to be worth it”
Ballard said landing the NASA contract has been “unbelievable” and said it’s been exciting to watch NASA launch Artemis One in recent weeks. The Orion spacecraft was launched by the space agency and set a new record for distances from Earth that a spacecraft intended to carry people has traveled.
“Just walking around with my kids, pointing at the moon, it’s crazy. It completely changes your perception of the night sky. We hope just to be worthy of the opportunity,” Ballard said. “It feels like one of those things that you do not just on behalf of yourself or behalf of your company, but want to do on behalf of humanity.”
Icon will deliver the structure within a single lunar day. That’s roughly 14 Earth days. Icon usually builds structures on Earth in one day.
“We’ll need a lot of coffee and won’t really stop working for 14 days straight once it lands on the lunar surface,” Ballard said. “I mean every single minute and second will count to keep progress.”
Austin startup Icon plans to develop 3D-printed homes for the area
“Hardest construction project in human history”
Ballard stated that Icon will draw on lessons from the Earth projects and three other space-focused projects including NASA. However, the new project will bring with it a lot of new challenges. To be able to send a printer to the Moon requires limited power and size. However, it is still possible to build structures that are the same size on Earth.
Ballard stated, “We have every faith that it will succeed.” “But it’ll be the most difficult construction project in human history by an order-of-magnitude.”
Icon has participated in many space-related NASA and Department of Defense projects. Through a subcontract, the company built a 3D-printed structure at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston for a series of missions designed to simulate what life could be like for astronauts living on Mars. Crews will be staying for one year to replicate living conditions on Mars. The first astronaut crew is expected to arrive soon.
Ballard stated that remote control and communication are key to Icon’s new moon project. There will be a mission control system, and Icon will be able to monitor, support and update the robotic systems from back on Earth, but Ballard said this also means lessons in “aggressive autonomy.”
“We’ve been doing the same thing in our terrestrial bases and trying to eliminate on-site labor and support to make housing more affordable on Earth, but those lessons, now five years in the making, pretty immediately translate to how to construct on another world.”
Icon plans to use lunar samples and simulants from Apollo missions to test the mechanical behavior of moon gravity. However, depending on where the spacecraft lands the material could differ slightly.
“The geology is different on the east side and also on the west side of Austin. Ballard explained that similar things can occur on moons with different minerals and materials. They also have elements that can melt at various points. There will be much research in the coming years to prepare. We will be almost building a recipe book.”
Additional work will be done before launch to make it as flexible as possible with multiple power systems, different speeds and rechargeable batteries. There will also be ways to adjust after it lands.
Ballard said that it was quite expensive to fly up there. You don’t get a second chance. You must do it right the first time.
Icon, a 3D-printing company based in Austin, is engulfed by fire. It’s well-known for its NASA projects.
“An interesting way to do work.”
Icon continues its projects on Earth. It has also built a 100-home community called Georgetown. Icon claims that it is the first large-scale 3D printed housing development in the nation. Icon is also growing and now employs almost 500 people.
Ballard stated that depending on the day, they are working on shelter for homeless people in Austin or thinking about the moonbase. It’s a cool place, and it’s a great way to work.
NASA’s announcement comes after a fire at Icon headquarters on Friday. Firefighters responded quickly to the fire at Yard, a mixed-use community on East St. Elo Road, in South Austin. This is where Icon had its office and printing facility. The company stated that there were no injuries and that it did expect no significant impact on ongoing business activities.
Ballard posted photos of the fire in a tweet and stated that nobody was present at the site at the time. The printers were also all out on the field.
“Black Friday. We are grateful that no one was injured. The printer fleet was out on the ground doing great work, while teams were home for the holiday. It’s time to build. We ride,” the tweet said.