Application of titanium alloy on new planetary lander

Autodesk and NASA engineers have come up with a new lander concept that can explore distant satellites such as Europa and Enceladus. It weighs less than most landers that NASA sends to other planets and satellites. Autodesk recently released this innovative lander design that looks like a spider made of metal.

When it comes to space travel, the best materials to withstand the harsh environment of space are metals such as titanium and aluminum, but these metals can be heavy. Moreover, the heavier the vehicle, the more difficult it is to launch into space and the higher the cost. Reducing weight helps reduce overall costs and reduces the complexity of the task. Weight reduction also creates opportunities to add more instruments and sensors to the lander, and instruments and sensors can collect more valuable scientific data.

To find ways to reduce the weight of the lifter, Autodesk uses its own artificial intelligence software. This artificial intelligence software can give hundreds of different designs in a short time. Engineers only need to enter a set of constraints to get the computer to generate a concept map. For example, in this project, Autodesk's input constraints are temperature and pressure, the type of material used (such as titanium and aluminum), and manufacturing methods (including casting and 3D printing).

According to Autodesk, the new lander is 35% lighter than the NASA's other landers, and its internal structure supports a scientific instrument weighing up to 250 pounds.