The fifth metal sample 3D-printed on the International Space Station has returned to Earth, ESA reported on 1 October 2026. The sample was produced by ESA's Metal 3D Printer in the station's Columbus module and was retrieved in July by ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot. It contains the first thrusters created in space.

The printer, launched to the ISS in January 2024, produced its first complete sample only a few months later, the first metal part ever made in space. ESA material scientists at ESTEC in the Netherlands examined and tested it to study how microgravity affected printing, then used the findings to improve the procedure for the two larger parts of the fifth sample.

The two smaller parts, designed by the German Aerospace Center (DLR), take the form of tiny thrusters for satellite propulsion. DLR's Florian Merz said two versions were designed: one as close as possible to the desired shape and one with thicker walls allowing post-processing to refine the inner diameter. Hot-fire tests at DLR's vacuum test bench in Lampoldshausen, Germany, will assess functionality and performance under representative operating conditions. Project manager Sonja Steinbach said comparing the space-made thrusters with equivalent Earth-produced components will show how microgravity influences manufacturing and the finished parts' performance.