satellite will 3d print itself in space and  maiden space is doing exactly that called  

arcana 1 the satellite could be a game changer  in how we design future spacecraft parking 1  

represents a technology development which has  never been done before no one has printed in  

space no one has done robotic assembly and no one  has done the sort of in-situ verification that we  

are planning to do and made in space seems to be  the right company to do it they're no stranger  

to the world of in-space manufacturing which  involves the challenge of printing in microgravity  

but since 2014 they've sent multiple 3d  printers to the iss where astronauts have  

printed more than 200 parts on board now the  mis team hopes to push the boundaries even  

further with arcana 1 and they have nasa's full  support as the project is under nasa's tipping  

point project the program granted mis roughly 75  million dollars and a new mission name on orbit  

servicing assembly and manufacturing or osam 2  but since that's a mouthful we'll be sticking to  

arcana 1. the company's previous 3d printers have  been operating within the safe confines of the iss  

but with arcana 1 they'll have to confront the  extremes of space the main two subsystems of the  

arcana satellite are going to be a additive  manufacturing extended structure machine  

that builds very long booms and then also robotic  arm that then assembles things on the space trap

so to help prepare the hardware for the harsh  environment of space the team tested out the 3d  

printer's capabilities it printed out a variety of  structures in a special northrop grumman facility  

that mimicked the conditions of space the  robotic arms were also tested for their  

assembly and manufacturing duties again in  a simulated space environment and so far  

everything seems to be working out but how exactly  will this all operate once it's in orbit well when  

arcana 1 launches it will head into low earth  orbit and that is where the real work begins  

it will start by 3d printing two 10 meter  long beams on either side of the spacecraft  

assisted by the robotic arm and in-situ  verification technology on board  

it's at this point where the solar panels will  start to unfurl so they can help generate power  

and these huge panels will reportedly produce up  to five times more power than regular solar panels  

the goal for the satellite is to demonstrate  in-space robotic manufacturing and assembly on an  

operational mission in the future this small  satellite could build even more complex structures  

like reflectors space telescopes and antennae just  to name a few satellites today have a structure  

which is designed to survive the first 10 minutes  of the mission right a 15-year mission needs to  

have a structure that can survive launch in a  sense of the satellite that is a very big very  

heavy structure what arcana one allows us to  do is fabricate this entire satellite on orbit

that's just it arcana 1 is just a test but  if it's successful it could completely change  

the way we build satellites in space i mean  imagine what that type of technology could do  

for future lunar habitats like nasa's gateway  outpost or conceptual technology that has never  

been feasible to fly to space like star shades  or space interferometers and having on-orbit 3d  

printing capabilities lessens the need for heavy  payloads and allows astronauts to print their  

own tools because as we venture out beyond low  earth orbit there will be a lot of things that  

we'll need along for the trip as we explore the  solar system we go further and further away that  

requires the technologies that made in space is  working on to enable those long distance missions  

sure you could wait for a resupply mission if  you're on mars but it makes much more sense just  

to just to print up a wrench that you need and on  top of that arcana one could also be capable of  

repairing and building upon existing structures  which could help reduce the need for astronaut  

spacewalks which could be dangerous so let's just  say archinaut 1 is gonna have its hands full once  

it launches but we still have a while to go before  we see the satellite take to the skies right now  

arcana 1 is expected to launch in early 2023  and when it does it could reshape how we build  

and live in space for the first time we have  a dedicated satellite mission to be building  

very large things in space when we first set  out to start this company we wanted to help  

humanity live and work in space and one thing  you need to do eventually is to build very large  

things for people to live in and this is the first  step along the way there's no doubt that traveling  

into space is a huge mental and physical challenge  it's not like you and i could just hop on board  

the next space mission but what would happen  if it did well that's exactly what plays out in  

nickelodeon's upcoming series the astronauts  where a group of totally unprepared kids  

accidentally launched themselves into space to  join this nail-biting but exciting adventure  

tune into nickelodeon to catch the astronauts you  don't want to miss it for more rocket launches  

check out our countdown to launch series here if  there are any other launches that you want to see  

us cover let us know in the comments below be sure  to subscribe to seeker and thanks for watching