Space Station Astronauts Build Objects that Couldn't Exist on Earth

"Aboard the International Space Station right now is a metal box, the size of a desktop PC tower," reports Popular Mechanics. "Inside, a nozzle is helping build little test parts that aren't possible to make on Earth."

The astronauts on board the International Space Station completed a 45 day experiment using a small microwave-sized box that injects resin into silicone skins to build parts. Scientists will evaluate the test pieces to see if they were successful in returning the parts to Earth. It would pave the way for astronauts to build huge parts that would be almost impossible on Earth thanks to gravity. It begins to open more opportunities for exploration.

The silicone skin is like a balloon filled with resin instead of air, an MIT engineer/researcher told Popular Science — with the resin then cured and solidified by a flash of ultraviolet light. (After which astronauts can cut away the silicone skin.) The best part? The skin and the resin are both readily available off-the-shelf products.