Technological advances are bringing down the cost of space research and exploration, with 3-D printing poised to provide a transformative leap, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden says. During a tour of the space agency's Ames Research Center here May 24, Bolden lauded the scientific potential of phonesats, tiny and inexpensive spacecraft based on off-the-shelf smartphones. He also singled out 3-D printing as a promising key enabler of humanity's push out into the solar system. "As NASA ventures further into space, whether redirecting an asteroid or sending humans to Mars, we'll need transformative technology to reduce cargo weight and volume," Bolden said. "In the future, perhaps astronauts will be able to print the tools or components they need while in space."
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