A team of Chinese scientists has completed the ground tests of an inflatable, reconfigurable module for a novel space manufacturing platform, in a significant step toward enabling large-scale industrial production in orbit.
The breakthrough module, details of which were announced on Monday, has an innovative design that is intended for launch in a tightly folded configuration and inflates once in orbit to form a large, stable workspace, according to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).
Test images have revealed that the expanded module forms a cylindrical structure over 2 meters in diameter. Researchers say the expandable structure makes it an ideal candidate for future space-based manufacturing, including areas such as biopharmaceuticals, 3D printing and the production of novel materials.
The field tests involved achieving a reliable, airtight connection between rigid structures and the flexible habitat; precise, controlled deployment in a microgravity environment; and ensuring the inflated module provides a sufficiently stable environment for high-precision manufacturing tasks.
Typically, orbital platforms are constrained by launch-vehicle size and costly to build, and experience difficulty expanding in space.
"This technology will push space manufacturing from proof-of-concept toward engineering reality," said project lead Yang Yiqiang from the CAS' Institute of Mechanics. "In the future, the utilization of space resources will be more accessible." (Xinhua)
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A collaborative research team has improved visual localization and topographic mapping techniques that enable China's Zhurong rover to navigate and conduct scientific investigations on Mars. These techniques played a crucial role in the success of the Tianwen-1 mission, which is China's first independent interplanetary exploration effort.
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