Humanity’s furthest ever journey into space has been delayed. Again. An interruption to the flow of helium forced NASA to scrap the revised 6 March launch date of the Artemis II mission, and begin the slow process to roll the increasingly unfortunate rocket back to the vehicle assembly bay.

While the delays are frustrating for the engineers involved, and space enthusiasts alike, every precaution has to be taken when a human crew is involved. 

While we wait for this historic mission, we thought we would revisit an episode where we examined progress in robotic systems in space. The deployment of which removes the risk to human life and will be a critical part of the future of space operations. A future that Artemis 2 crew will spearhead.

Space offers certain conditions that make it more favourable to manufacturing than Earth. Near zero gravity, extreme cold temperatures and a complete vacuum means certain industries such as quantum computing, semiconductors and human organ growth have already demonstrated the benefits of being manufactured in space. We explore how close we are to seeing manufacturing industries existing in space and what barriers there currently are. 

In this episode, two experts from the Satellite Applications Catapult explain how they are working with a variety of companies in the in-orbit service and manufacturing sector to try and make the UK a world leader in this new frontier of space.

Guests

Mike Curtis-Rouse, Head of Access to Space, Satellite Applications Catapult

Jeremy Haddall, Robotics Development Lead, Satellite Applications Catapult

Partner

The Satellite Applications Catapult is one of nine Catapults, uniquely established to transform the UK’s capability for innovation in specific areas and to help drive future economic growth. They work with companies of all sizes in the UK space sector to help with their business, access to infrastructure for testing and bringing their product to market.

The post #361 Revisited: Space – The Robotic Age first appeared on Engineering Matters.