ICON/OLYMPUS 3D printing efforts and related NASA experiments underpin the validation of in-situ regolith-based infrastructure for repeated rocket operations, supported by a multi-year contract.

The project envisions a repeatable, sustainable lunar infrastructure framework that enables iterative rocket landings and launches, with continual design refinement guided by real lunar data to improve models and mitigation of cracks and deformation.

The research appears in Acta Astronautica, titled Lunar landing and launching pad design considerations using ISRU materials by Eliza Mount and colleagues (2026).

For a 50-ton lander, the proposed landing pad thickness is about 0.33 meters (14 inches) to balance strength and thermal stresses while avoiding excessive thickness that could raise fracture risk.

A Purdue University study by Shirley Dyke and team advocates designing a lunar landing pad from in-situ regolith to support large rockets, reducing reliance on costly Earth-sourced materials.

Construction and maintenance are expected to rely on robots (teleoperated or autonomous) rather than human labor, with early missions focusing on in-situ testing and monitoring of deformation, load response, and thermal expansion.

Design challenges center on unknown mechanical and thermal properties of sintered regolith, requiring modeling of stress/strain and thermal expansion across the 28-day lunar cycle and preventing curling, warping, or cracking.

Early missions will prioritize data collection and testing to validate models before scaling up to a full landing/launch pad system, with iterative design improvements emerging over time.

In-situ testing is essential because regolith behavior, including the strength of sintered regolith and its thermal and mechanical properties under lunar conditions, remains uncertain and cannot be reliably inferred from Earth simulants.

Sintering regolith is identified as the preferred method to create a cohesive slab that can withstand mechanical stresses and reduce dust ejection during rocket operations.

A lunar landing pad is needed to minimize ejecta and dust from rocket plumes, protecting nearby structures and the rocket, thereby improving safety and base readiness.

Potential failure modes include spalling, cracking from thermal cycles, mislanding, and cumulative degradation from repeated rocket blasts, which must be anticipated and mitigated.