NASA 3D prints the first ever object in space

The folks over at NASA are certainly knee deep in research and development as well, and they have been working on the possibility of 3D printed food before. Well, it seems that there is yet another milestone achieved this week where human spaceflight is concerned – a 3D printer was turned on in space, which in turn resulted in the first official 3D print on the International Space Station (ISS).

Human spaceflight reached an important milestone this week. An additive manufacturing device, or 3D printer, was turned on, and initiated the first official 3D print on the International Space Station (ISS). The print took slightly more than an hour, and once it finished, the world changed. At the Made In Space Operations Center in Moffett Field, California, the rest of the team and I had the ability to command the printer and see inside it as the machine received and executed our commands. For the first time, humans demonstrated the ability to manufacture while in space. At this moment, if the space station absolutely needs a part that the 3D printer can build, I can start producing the part onboard the ISS within minutes — from my chair in California.