At 1:52 AM EDT this morning, SpaceX CRS-4 launched from Cape Canaveral.
Inside the rocket is the 3D printer we created for the space station.
It is the first 3D printer in space, and the only 3D printer in space.
Four years ago, we founded Made In Space to bring 3D printing to space, to make it easier to put stuff in space.
Since the dawn of the space program, space exploration has been limited by the costs, delays, and risks of chemical rockets.
Finally, now, there is an alternative. Once our printer arrives on the space station, there will be a faster, cheaper, and safer way to send hardware to space.
This is an essential step if humanity is going to truly colonize the universe. It is the first major step towards eliminating dependence on Earth for hardware resupply.
By building what we need there, not here, we can make our dreams of living amongst the stars into a reality.
After all, the hardest part of colonizing space is getting stuff there.
Follow me on Twitter (@mikechen) for more updates on the first 3D printer in space, and the company we created to put it there, called Made In Space.
