Made in space? Start-up brings factory in orbit one step closer to reality

It sounds like science fiction - a factory, located hundreds of kilometres above the Earth, churning out high-quality materials. But a Cardiff-based company is a step closer to making this a reality. Space Forge have sent a microwave-sized factory into orbit, and have demonstrated that its furnace can be switched on and reach temperatures of around 1,000C. They plan to manufacture material for semiconductors, which can be used back on Earth in electronics in communications infrastructure, computing and transport. Conditions in space are ideal for making semiconductors, which have the atoms they're made of arranged in a highly ordered 3D structure.