{
  "id": 19388658,
  "title": "Automated Assembly in Space is the Future and NOM4D is Showing the Way",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/10/automated-assembly-in-space-is-the-future-and-nom4d-is-showing-the-way",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-11-10T19:52:32.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Universe Today",
    "slug": "universe-today",
    "url": "https://www.universetoday.com/articles/automated-assembly-in-space-is-the-future-and-nom4d-is-showing-the-way"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Building large structures in space requires innovative solutions, as rockets cannot accommodate massive components and existing rocket equations pose significant challenges. The JWST telescope, for instance, utilizes folding designs to overcome these limitations. A promising approach to building large structures in space is through automated assembly, as demonstrated by NOM4D, the Novel Orbital and Moon Manufacturing, Materials and Mass-efficient Design program.\n\nRecently, NOM4D successfully showcased automated in-space assembly using a gantry robot, which constructs a truss structure by moving along x, y, and z axes. The payload consisted of individual components with custom joints, which were assembled into a structure while a thin reflective mesh, mimicking a space-based antenna, was simultaneously applied. Andrew Detor, the NOM4D program manager, stated that NOM4D's objective is to enable efficient, scalable construction of very large structures in space, with nothing approaching that scale achievable today.\n\nNOM4D's concept is simple yet effective, like a child's construction toy. Each section of the structure is built piece by piece, with individual truss members joined at nodes, forming a larger structure. This approach combines operations in a way that scales, with no need for complicated robotics or advanced algorithms.\n\nThe potential applications of such scalable construction extend beyond space manufacturing and construction. They include building lunar lava tube habitats, liquid mirror telescopes, and large space depots or solar arrays. These developments could pave the way for future orbital facilities, like the Lunar Gateway, and help humanity advance towards a more significant presence in space.",
  "summary": "The ability to build large structures in space is maturing. The ISS, Mir, and Tiangong were built in space from pre-constructed modules, but a new program called NOM4D is taking space construction to the next level. It recently showed that a simple robot can create truss-like structures in space from premade components. Is the sky the limit for NOM4D?",
  "key_points": [
    "NOM4D demonstrates automated in-space assembly using gantry robot",
    "Payload includes custom joint components assembled into truss structure",
    "Concept aims for scalable construction of large space structures"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}