{"id":20354,"date":"2025-03-21T16:16:30","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T21:16:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/?page_id=20354"},"modified":"2025-03-27T10:37:06","modified_gmt":"2025-03-27T15:37:06","slug":"extraterrestrial-engineering-and-construction-extec-research","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/impact\/research\/extraterrestrial-engineering-and-construction-extec-research\/","title":{"rendered":"Extraterrestrial Engineering and Construction (EXTEC) Research"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-strategic-vision-unite-expertise-to-accelerate-readiness\">Strategic Vision: Unite Expertise To Accelerate Readiness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Texas A&amp;M University\u2019s Extraterrestrial Engineering and Construction \u2014 EXTEC\u2014 research team activates the interdisciplinary internal and external collaborations required to accelerate the development and testing of materials and methods for on- and off-Earth civil engineering and construction solutions. Our driving force is to discover, develop and validate applied infrastructure solutions through robust modeling, simulation, and rigorous experimentation. Closing the knowledge gaps will mitigate risk and maximize mission success in lunar and Martian surface operations in support of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/humans-in-space\/artemis\/\">NASA\u2019s Artemis campaign<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-175385303-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Crescent new moon (photo)\" class=\"wp-image-20357\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-175385303-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-175385303-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-175385303-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-175385303-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-175385303-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-175385303-2048x2048.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-radical-collaboration-we-re-here-to-help\">Radical Collaboration \u2013 We\u2019re here to help.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>A comprehensive multidisciplinary approach is required to meet the challenge of rapid and responsive technology development for the Artemis missions. No single discipline or organization is equipped with all the required insights, so the best available minds and resources must act together. EXTEC will facilitate interdisciplinary research teams across the Texas A&amp;M Space Alliance (TAMSA), within NASA, and across industry and academia. This approach will also uncover synergies between STMD, HEOMD and SMD areas of interest.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-2 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-464792626.png\" alt=\"GettyImages 464792626\" class=\"wp-image-20360\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1;object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-464792626.png 1000w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-464792626-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-464792626-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-464792626-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-dust-to-structures\">Dust to Structures<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>D2S is an integrated program for ISRU-based materials characterization and development. Through experimental testing and multi-scale modeling, it will ensure the performance of infrastructure elements for dust control and repeated access to off-planet surfaces. Landing pads, berms, blast and radiation shields, roads, and path pavers are all targeted products of ISRU. This work will draw upon best practices emerging from other expeditionary-type missions in remote and extreme environments, such as in-theater military operations and global deep oceanic research (IODP). Materials and methods for constructing in the lunar environment will be a primary product of D2S.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-3 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-1395983416.png\" alt=\"GettyImages 1395983416\" class=\"wp-image-20368\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-1395983416.png 1000w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-1395983416-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-1395983416-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/app\/uploads\/2025\/03\/GettyImages-1395983416-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-lunar-surface-experiments-program\">Lunar Surface Experiments Program<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>LSEP is a step-wise initiative to establish the science, engineering, and materials knowledge base required to inform models and methods for lunar surface operations. Initial experiments, to be flown on early CLPS missions, will test 3-phase (solid\/liquid\/gas) fluid dynamics in 1\/6 g, novel solar cell generation and radiative coating performance in the dusty lunar environment while ground laboratory experiments will develop methods for lunar soil consolidation. Increasingly complex and integrated deployments would ride on CLPS and NASA science and cargo missions in tandem with NASA\u2019s path to Lunar Sustainability, targeted for 2030.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-4 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Find out more about the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arch.tamu.edu\/impact\/research\/extraterrestrial-engineering-and-construction-extec-research\/extec-more-information\/\">Extraterrestrial Engineering and Construction (EXTEC) Research<\/a> project.  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Strategic Vision: Unite Expertise To Accelerate Readiness Texas A&amp;M University\u2019s Extraterrestrial Engineering and Construction \u2014 EXTEC\u2014 research team activates the interdisciplinary internal and external collaborations required to accelerate the development and testing of materials and methods for on- &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1129,"featured_media":20375,"parent":142,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-20354","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.5 (Yoast SEO v24.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Extraterrestrial Engineering and Construction (EXTEC) Research<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Mitigating risk in space. 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