This 3D printed crowfoot ratchet head is one of many early 3D printed items that demonstrated the viability of 3D printing technology in space. It was made using printing facilities to manufacture tools and other needed items (habitation pieces, spare parts, etc.). It was not printed in space. Using recycled, additive, or other yet to be developed machines could make it possible for people to live longer, more safely, and with less immediate contact with Earth-based resources. Outposts on the Moon and certainly Mars would require such capabilities for there to be long-duration missions with less ability to acquire new or replacement equipment from Earth.

Made in Space (since acquired by Redwire) developed, in conjunction with engineers at the NASA Marshall Spaceflight Center, the technology demonstration 3D printer. The printer used a fused filament fabrication (FFF) process, feeding a thread of plastic through a heating element continuously and onto a tray layer by layer to create a three-dimensional object.

Redwire Space Inc. donated this 3D printed crowfoot ratchet head to the Musuem in 2021.