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Researching 3D Printing Technology on the Space Station

Crew members on the International Space Station re-installed the first 3D printer in orbit, during the week of June 27, 2016, to continue research on the developing technology and how it can be used in space. NASA astronaut Jeff Williams installed the printer in the Microgravity Science Glovebox to begin another round of sample builds for NASA’s 3D Printing in Zero-G Technology Demonstration. Williams took this photograph of the 3D printer on June 28, after installation. The 3D printer, originally delivered to the station and tested in 2014, heats a relatively low-temperature plastic filament to build parts layer by layer using designs supplied to the machine.”

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