Space start-up Relativity verified its 3D printing process works to build a rocket

[Elderberry]

CNBC by Michael Sheetz 5/12/2020

Key Points

•   Rocket builder Relativity Space, which is 3D-printing almost entire rockets, recently passed a key milestone as it moves closer to its first launch.

•   â€œIt’s a pretty big deal to show that the materials actually work and the manufacturing process actually works,” Relativity CEO Tim Ellis told CNBC.

•   Additionally, the company’s rocket development is still on track for its first launch in 2021, Ellis noted, despite the coronavirus pandemic that’s begun causing delays within the space industry.

Relativity Space passed a key milestone toward its goal of launching a rocket that is almost entirely 3D-printed.

The Los Angeles-based space start-up conducted a series of tests in December using a 3D-printed tank, which the company increasingly pressurized until it burst.

“It’s a pretty big deal to show that the materials actually work and the manufacturing process actually works,” Relativity CEO Tim Ellis told CNBC on Monday.

More: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/12/relativity-space-verifies-3d-printing-works-to-build-its-rocket.html?mc_cid=94989cf37e&mc_eid=ccdc8e505f