The European Space Agency has created its own version of a Lego brick that is 3D printed from meteorite dust, as the organisation explores how to cons

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2024-07-09 13:30:09

The European Space Agency has created its own version of a Lego brick that is 3D printed from meteorite dust, as the organisation explores how to construct buildings in space.

The "space bricks", as Lego and the European Space Agency (ESA) call them, are made using the dust of a 4.5 billion-year-old meteorite discovered in 2000 in north-west Africa.

The meteorite dust acts as a stand-in for lunar regolith – the loose material covering the surface of Earth's moon, which is largely the product of meteorite impacts.

Because only a small amount of regolith exists on Earth – samples brought back during the Apollo missions – the scientists settled on the closest substitute they could find.

The space brick development is part of the ESA's contribution to the international Artemis programme, which aims to not only return astronauts to the moon but also establish a lunar base there.

Since bringing materials from Earth is considered too expensive and time-consuming, the hope is that lunar regolith can be used to build structures such as launch pads and habitats.