3D printing may help NASA develop a moon colony

The idea of a moon colony has been talked about for decades
To do so, agency must overcome technological challenges
Lunar dust could help establish initial colony as soon as 2040

Updated: Oct 11, 2023 / 11:28 AM EDT

(NewsNation) — NASA wants to build a space colony on the moon by 2040.

A new report in The New York Times dives into how this plan could be accelerated by the use of lunar dust, which could form the basis for creating actual houses on the moon through a form of 3D printing.

Dr. Leroy Chiao, a former NASA astronaut, joined “NewsNation Now” to explain some of the challenges with starting a colony on the moon.

“Initially, you’re going to be very much dependent on a supply chain coming form the earth,” Chiao said.

He acknowledged new technology could make it much easier to colonize the moon and outer space, but remained skeptical about new developments in the near term.

“There are a lot of different things that have been talked about, even small experiments done, but we’re nowhere near ready,” he said.