FASTER, PLEASE: First metal 3D printer on space station dribbles molten steel. “The first metal 3D printer aboard the International Space Station successfully dribbled out a molten ‘S curve’ last Thursday, in what the European Space Agency (ESA) is calling a ‘giant leap forward for in-orbit manufacturing.’ Combining a high-power laser and stainless-steel wire, an Airbus-built metal 3D printer deposited its first liquefied test lines inside the ESA’s Columbus research module. For ‘safety reasons,’ the machine operated in a ‘fully sealed box, preventing excess heat or fumes from escaping.'”