NASA has stated that it intends to build human settlements on the moon by 2040.
In an update, the company stated that it is collaborating with ICON, an Austin, Texas-based construction technologies company, on early research and development of a space-based construction system that might support future Moon and Mars exploration.
The company has 3D printed communities of homes and structures on Earth and took part in NASA’s 3D Printed Habitat Challenge, showcasing a construction approach and technology that might be applied beyond Earth.
NASA says ICON will collaborate with the Marshall Space Flight Centre in Huntsville, Alabama, on the Moon to Mars Planetary Autonomous Construction methods (MMPACT) project to test lunar soil simulant using various processing and printing methods. The MMPACT initiative brings together NASA, industry, government, and academic institutions.
Based on the progress, NASA may award ICON additional funds and investigate the possibility of conducting an in-situ test on the lunar surface.
