By Kurtis Archer | 2025-02-03

In a breakthrough that could redefine the future of space missions, scientists have developed a new flexible "metamaterial" capable of reconfiguring itself into different shapes and structures.

This innovation could pave the way for adaptable habitats, telescopes and equipment that can morph as needed -- potentially making deep space exploration more efficient and cost-effective, scientists at the European Space Agency (ESA) said in a research paper published last November.

Inspired by nature, this material mimics the way organic structures grow through simple, repeating patterns.

Just as a collection of bone cells forms a sturdy skeleton, this new metamaterial gains its strength and versatility from its engineered geometric design rather than from the properties of its base materials.

By applying external forces like compression or electric fields, researchers have demonstrated how these materials can shift form dynamically, a potential game changer for aerospace technology.

The ESA scientists said they developed through a computer simulation a reconfigurable metamaterial that avoids tangling -- one of the main challenges in shape-shifting materials.

At the heart of this breakthrough is a hypothetical type of metamaterial called a totimorphic lattice, which is a triangular structural system composed of connected beams, ball joints and springs.

By linking many of these units together, the researchers said they can create structures that effortlessly morph into different forms with minimal input.

Potential to revolutionize space missions

The scientists working on the material have used an algorithm to solve optimization problems within the computer simulations.

Using the algorithm, they can change any configuration of the lattice for more optimal purposes, transforming the metamaterial from one shape into another.

The researchers also were able to use totimorphic lattices to design a flexible space telescope that can alter its focal length by adapting its lens curvature. During a mission, this feature would allow the device to adapt and re-adapt as needed for its space observation activities.

By creating structures that can change their shape and other properties through an external force application like compression or an electric field, scientists potentially could revolutionize aerospace missions.

The possibilities are vast and industry changing.

A payload of simple materials launched to orbit that can assemble and reassemble themselves would be vastly preferable to launching large and assembled structures that cannot change or be updated as needed, the scientists found.

That ability means if a simple habitat structure or piece of equipment made of metamaterial were deployed during a space project, the structure's shape and sturdiness could be altered and re-altered based on the needs of the mission throughout its duration, according to the report.

The scientists emphasized that although the totimorphic lattices are still hypothetical, continued research and development on these next-generation metamaterials could become an essential part of future space mission -- providing astronauts with adaptable, durable and cost-effective solutions for surviving and working in space.

The research validated "in simulation the applicability of this framework in the space domain, adding to the growing number of concepts of self-constructing and reconfigurable designs crucial for future uncrewed deep space exploration," the report said.

New class of materials

A report on totimorphic structural materials published by the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences in 2021 laid the groundwork for the latest discoveries.

"Today's shape-shifting materials and structures can only transition between a few stable configurations but we have shown how to create structural materials that have an arbitrary range of shape-morphing capabilities," said L. Mahadevan, a Harvard professor of applied mathematics, organismic and evolutionary biology, and physics and senior author of the paper, in a statement in 2021.

"These structures allow for independent control of the geometry and mechanics, laying the foundation for engineering functional shapes using a new type of morphable unit cell."

"Since these materials are grounded in geometry, they could be scaled down to be used as sensors in robotics or biotechnology or could be scaled up to be used at the architectural scale," added Mahadevan.

"All together, these totimorphs pave the way for a new class of materials whose deformation response can be controlled at multiple scales."

Scientists are hoping these metamaterials being designed will exist one day, allowing spacefarers to have flexible and adaptable structures and objects that are inexpensive to launch, simple to use and capable of morphing into other shapes and structures when needed.