SAN ANTONIO – There are many projects around the world that are focused on the future of space technology and one local company, Astroport Space Technologies, has a new partnership with NASA that will have them at the forefront in creating out-of-this-world space ventures.
Sam Ximenes is a space architect and the CEO of Astroport Space Technologies. He remembers the first moon landing in 1969.
“When the first landings occurred, I never thought that there would be a point in time where I would be involved,” Ximenes said.
Astroport Space Technologies is presently working with NASA to innovate the future of going to the moon. And right now, there is a specific goal.
“We are building landing pads and infrastructures, surface systems that go into building outposts and the lunar bases essentially,” Ximenes said.
Astroport has a process where a robot uses moon rock as materials and a 3-D printer and creative technology.
“It’s to show that we have a process for melt in the lunar soil, the lunar regolith, they call it, and we actually melt it and try to turn that into a brick or hardened material,” Ximenes said.
And it’s exciting to think that it’s all happening right here in San Antonio.
“For San Antonio, this is a big goal of mine, to make San Antonio a spacefaring community and San Antonio to become known as a place for space construction in particular. We hope to plant the seeds of that construction in that space construction industry in San Antonio,” Ximenes said.
Ximenes said he believes San Antonio is the best place to help grow the future of the space economy.
“The University of Texas at San Antonio is our partner as well, and they have tremendous research capabilities. Plus, we have also collaborative efforts with the Southwest Research Institute. We got it here, you have it all here and then we can do it,” Ximenes said.