At Tethon 3D, we are fascinated and excited by 3D Printing, materials development and Space! It's only natural, then, that we would want to produce a limited edition object that combines all of our passions for a Kickstarter Make 100 project.

Fortunately, the materials that comprise Martian soil are also fairly abundant here on Earth. We refer to Mars as the "red planet" because it has a thick layer of oxidized iron dust on the surface.

By processing a mixture of materials that simulate the composition of Mars soil into a very fine powder, we made a material that is compatible with a power/ink jet binder 3D printer.

NASA offers digital models of some popular lunar, Mars, asteroid and space equipment objects. We selected the Gale Crater for our project, as it is the landing site of the Curiosity Rover - that is still up there researching the planet today.

Mars Curiosity Rover

For our project, we will 3D print replicas of the Gale Crater with our simulated Mars soil. These will be mounted in an 8 x 8 inch black framed shadow box, labelled and numbered with a brass plate.

8 x 8 inch black framed shadow box

We will make up to 100 of these 3D printed replicas and NEVER fabricate any more at this scale, by this method, with this material. In fact, due to coloration differences in the material, no two replicas will be identical.

Your support of our project will allow us to experiment with this new material in 3D printing, educate others about Mars exploration and bring joy to Mars enthusiasts.

Thank you!