In our era, we are witnessing the new Renaissance of space exploration. SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic are racing to claim their share of the excitement. In 2022, NASA announced the Artemis mission, a project not merely aiming to repeat the success of the Apollo mission but to “go to the moon and stay there”. Astra is a tribute to these bold ventures. Instead of travelling to space, the project aims to bring a piece of space to people’s hands. The launch was timed to coincide with the take-off of the first Artemis mission in November 2022.
Astra is a series of unique jewellery pieces shaped as precise replicas of the Moon’s surface using data from NASA missions. Users can select a specific area of the Earth’s satellite and design its scaled-down version in precious metals through the bespoke Web 3D Customiser. Astra comes in 3 sizes, versatile to be worn as a pendant, earrings or a brooch, and is available in three finishes: solid silver with a satin look, dark silver with black details, and shiny rhodium plated. Limited Edition versions feature engraved moon coordinates and custom numbering. Originally launched on Kickstarter, Astra has evolved into an independent crowdfunding project. A new version, built using Mars altimetric data and crafted in copper and rose gold, is coming soon.
Astra web app
Astra earring, size small, sterling silver
Astra pendant, size large, dark silver
Astra, size large, dark silver
Astra combines a 3D digital product, a customised physical piece, and space-inspired branding. The project began by testing its technical feasibility with NASA’s open-sharing policy of data, media and branding. Most of the space missions’ data can be freely accessed, including the Moon’s topology and morphology from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), which became the main data source for this project. The jewellery design was created with Rhinoceros3D and Grasshopper3D, using a computational modelling approach. Going through multiple iterations, the first prototypes were 3D printed in polymers, followed by metal versions. The design of jewellery pieces was followed by user customisation: the bespoke web app was prototyped by combining Photoshop and 3D modelling, followed by a development in React, and React Three Fiber for rendering 3D content.
Working on the concept
3D printed prototypes
NASA’s data was transformed into virtual and physical objects by combining various types of information to model a replica of the Moon’s surface, starting from a 3D sphere. In the web app, a colour map guides the browser on how to paint the surface, while a displacement map adds the shape details defining the lunar terrain. Each pixel in these texture maps corresponds to a point on the lunar surface, defined by a longitude-latitude pair. The retrieval of the pixels from the selected area was automated to update the 3D model of the jewellery in the back-end.
NASA data projection and moon rendering
3D model
The production of custom jewellery pieces was carried out by Materialise, a company specialising in 3D printing, experienced in replicating intricate details on scale and ensuring the safety of a reliable supply chain. The final stage involved designing packaging, accessories, and booklets, while simultaneously producing marketing materials, such as photography, copy, video content, ads, and social media campaigns.
Packaging design
Astra themed t-shirts
Close-up of 3D printed sterling silver
Detail of the engraved moon coordinates