---
title: "ESA moves its orbital metal 3D printer closer to operational use"
url: https://www.voxelmatters.com/esa-moves-its-orbital-metal-3d-printer-closer-to-operational-use/
date: 2026-07-21
modified: 2026-07-21
lang: en
author: "Joseph Caron-Dawe"
description: "The European Space Agency (ESA) has taken a further step toward routine metal additive manufacturing in orbit, after ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot retrieved the fifth sample produced by the agency's..."
categories:
  - "Aerospace AM"
  - "AM for Space"
  - "AM Research"
  - "Metal Additive Manufacturing"
tags:
  - "future"
image: https://www.voxelmatters.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ESA-in-orbit-metal-3D-printer-01-640x360.jpg
word_count: 384
---

# ESA moves its orbital metal 3D printer closer to operational use

[The European Space Agency (ESA)](https://www.voxelmatters.directory/company/european-space-agency/) has taken a further step toward routine metal additive manufacturing in orbit, after ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot retrieved the fifth sample produced by the agency's Metal 3D Printer Technology Demonstrator aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

At an altitude of 400km, the unit, described by ESA as the first metal 3D printer in orbit, was launched to the station in 2024. Six cargo missions have delivered supplies there since the start of 2026.

## Samples returned for analysis

Three earlier prints have already been examined at ESTEC, ESA's technical center in the Netherlands, and at the Danish Technical University (DTU), where teams compared the parts’ quality and material characteristics at macro and micro scale against reference prints made on the ground with the same machine.

![ESA moves its orbital metal 3D printer closer to operational use](https://www.voxelmatters.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ESA-in-orbit-metal-3D-printer-02-340x196.jpg)

ESA reported that the results would be published in the coming weeks. The fifth sample returned aboard the CRS SpX-34 spacecraft and will be tested at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and at ESTEC.

“With a better understanding of the printer's capabilities, limitations and operations — both in orbit and on the ground — as well as the quality of parts produced in a crewed space environment, ESA is now well-positioned to take the next step towards in-orbit metal 3D-printing,” explained Rob Postema, Technical Officer at the European Space Agency.

## A halted build and a recovery procedure

Adenot, who is flying the εpsilon mission, also prepared the printer for its next run, scheduled for later this year. She installed a substrate carrying an element that had been partially printed before an anomaly stopped the process. The teams intended to test a recovery procedure and resume the build.

“3D printers are far from being simple gadgets, and I'm delighted to have worked on this European technology demonstration for the future of human spaceflight,” said Adenot.

“Congratulations to everyone involved and thank you to the CADMOS User Support Center teams who guided me throughout the process!”

An industrial team led by Airbus Defense and Space built the demonstrator under an ESA contract, with co-funding from Airbus. The CADMOS User Support and Operations Center of French space agency CNES operates the printer.

[LFAM company Caracol has also been involved with the ESA’s efforts](https://www.voxelmatters.com/caracol-advances-in-orbit-autonomous-lfam/), leading on the AI-Based Monitoring of Large Robotic Format Additive Manufacturing in Space (AIMIS-LFAM) project.