The Exoplanet Climate Infrared Telescope (EXCITE) is a NASA mission that will use a large balloon to carry a telescope to the edge of space above Antarctica, where it will measure the atmospheric compositions of planets orbiting other stars. The telescope assembly needs brackets delivering high stiffness with low mass, and the engineering team at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center is using a combination of artificial intelligence and additive manufacturing to obtain this hardware. The so-called "evolved structures" realized through generative design are so geometrically complex that metal 3D printing via laser powder bed fusion offers a practical way to produce them - and in the case of a large titanium bracket, offers the only cost-effective method. The Cool Parts Show visits the Goddard Space Flight Center for this episode on AM and AI enabling the exploration of alien worlds.

This episode of The Cool Parts Show brought to you by Carpenter Additive. https://www.carpenteradditive.com/

LEARN MORE ABOUT:

EXCITE mission overview: https://techport.nasa.gov/view/96518

- Status:
https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/co....

- An early paper describing the mission: https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/2...

Goddard Space Flight Center: https://www.nasa.gov/goddard

Other 3D printed parts created via generative design: https://www.additivemanufacturing.med...

The connection between AM and AI (AM Radio podcast episode): https://www.additivemanufacturing.med...

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