LEGO, the famous Danish brick manufacturer, has collaborated with the European Space Agency (ESA) on one of the most unique projects in the history of the brand: the creation of LEGO pieces made in meteorite dust.
These special bricks, made to demonstrate the feasibility of build structures using lunar materialsare on display in selected LEGO stores, including the prestigious store on 5th Avenue in Manhattan, until September 20th.
The initiative aims to explore new avenues for the construction of future lunar bases, reducing the need to transport materials from Earth to the Moon, which is a costly and complex operation.
The bricks are made of a materia called “lunar regolith”a substance similar to that found on the surface of the Moon, rich in minerals and rocks, and so far apparently essential for the construction of extraterrestrial colonies.
According to LEGO, throughout history, humanity has used earth and sand to build; now it could do the same with lunar regolith, available in abundance on the Moon.
The ESA produced a Regolith surrogate by grinding a very old meteorite and transforming the resulting powder into a compound suitable for 3D printing of LEGO pieces, which maintain the typical functionality of the famous bricks, are compatible with the famous LEGO Systembut are, unfortunately, only available in the “space gray” color.
Building on lunar soil is uncharted territory, and experimenting with our space bricks has allowed us to explore different design possibilities and construction techniques”
Aidan Cowley, scientist and project manager at ESA
The advancement towards lunar bases is no longer just a futuristic idea. NASA, together with the Italian Space Agency and Thales Alenia Space Corporation, is planning the construction of the first permanent human station on the Moon by 2030. Recent proposals for lunar habitats range from mobile-home-like structures to full-blown inflatable villages.
The LEGO brick experiment is therefore not just an end in itself, but represents an important step forward in the understanding, and future use, of lunar materials for construction purposes in the context of space exploration.
