Space Station Live: January 4, 2016

The dream of a self-sufficient space-faring civilization moved a step closer to reality as a commercial 3D printer was installed aboard the International Space Station for a tryout in orbit.

A Long March 7 rocket lifted off Thursday with Tianzhou 1, an unpiloted refueling freighter heading for China’s Tiangong 2 mini-space station to conduct several months of robotic demonstrations, practicing for the assembly and maintenance of a future permanently-staffed orbital research complex.

NASA’s lead spacewalk flight director Royce Renfrew talks with public affairs office Rob Navias about the curtailed spacewalk by astronauts Tim Kopra and Tim Peake on January 15, 2016. Although the spacewalk’s major objective to replace a failed voltage regulator was a success, the spacewalk was cut short when a small water bubble had formed inside Kopra’s helmet.