The quest for better and faster interstellar travel is a fascinating area.  NASA has made huge strides and get ready for this, 3D printing is now in the mix:

The world’s first spacecraft thruster with a platinum combustion chamber and nozzle made by 3D printing has passed its baptism of fire with a series of firings lasting more than an hour and 618 ignitions.

“This is a world first,” explains Steffen Beyer of Airbus Defence & Space, managing the project. “The firings included a single burn of 32 minutes, during which a maximum throat temperature of 1253°C was attained.

Check out the video of the 3D printed device in action on page 2

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