3D Printed Pictures of Space

3D printer creating an image

I’ve heard a lot of talk about 3D printers but it’s all just talk. Call me cynical, but I want to see some real-life practical uses for the printer before I get excited.

Well, here’s an idea that is pretty exciting: What about creating 3D images of photos taken by the Hubble Telescope so people who are visually impaired can (almost) literally touch the stars? Yeah, that sounds impressive!

Astronomers at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore are working on this project for exactly this reason – they want to bring space to the fingertips of people who can’t look up at the night sky or look at celestial photos on their laptop. Think of all the striking images that could be rendered into 3D accessible prints!

It’s not easy though. For one thing, what should a star feel like? It’s hard to say and this group is starting from scratch here, but they are dedicated and making strides. And it’s a great idea!

For more information read this article.


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