--- description: NASA announced Wednesday that it had built a turbopump using a 3-D printer. title: NASA Just 3-D Printed Part of a Rocket image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta4ccfbe4a20aedf3/6986a191169ab0acc127af61/452109418.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # NASA Just 3-D Printed Part of a Rocket by [Victor Luckerson](/author/victor-luckerson/) ## Victor Luckerson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 27, 2015 11:57 AM CUT  A NASA rocket. A NASA rocket.NASA—Getty Images by [Victor Luckerson](/author/victor-luckerson/) ## Victor Luckerson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 27, 2015 11:57 AM CUT NASA is getting closer to 3-D printing a rocket engine. The space agency announced Wednesday that it had built a turbopump using a 3-D printer. The device, which is designed to boost the power of an engine, is one of the most complex rocket parts ever designed with a 3-D printer. According to NASA, the 3-D printed turbopump has 45 percent fewer parts than a turbopump made via traditional methods. The device is able to power a rocket engine capable of generating 35,000 pounds of thrust and is able to survive in an environment where fuel is burned at greater than 6,000 degrees Fahrenheit. NASA is also 3-D printing injectors and other engine parts in order to make the production of future spacecraft more efficient. Here’s a video of the 3-D printed fuel pump in action: ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4012907/nasa-3dprinting-rocket-part/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4012907/nasa-3dprinting-rocket-part/"},"headline":"NASA Just 3-D Printed Part of a Rocket","datePublished":"2015-08-27T11:57:10.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:06:28.536Z","description":"It's more efficient than traditionally produced rocket parts","url":"https://time.com/4012907/nasa-3dprinting-rocket-part/","keywords":["Tech","Innovation","Space","NASA","rockets","pubdesk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta4ccfbe4a20aedf3/6986a191169ab0acc127af61/452109418.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Victor Luckerson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/victor-luckerson/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta4ccfbe4a20aedf3/6986a191169ab0acc127af61/452109418.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Cygnus Spacecraft Launches from Pad-0A","caption":"Cygnus Spacecraft Launches from Pad-0A","creditText":"NASA—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4012907/nasa-3dprinting-rocket-part/","name":"NASA Just 3-D Printed Part of a Rocket"}}]}] ```