Tag Archives: space design

This modular origami tent built by space architects for the moon unfolds into 750 times it size!

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Studying space exploration is a side hobby of mine so this extreme-weather resistant origami moon habitat is one of my dream homes. SAGA is a Danish architecture studio that designed LUNARK which is a modular shelter that expands and becomes 750 times its original size! It was crucial to design a structure that would be easily transportable (to the moon!), have a zero-waste ecosystem, and could withstand arctic temperatures and meteor showers – LUNARK does it all, in fact, it was taken out on a test run in Greeland by the architects themselves!

SAGA has one mission – make outer space a little cozier for future human inhabitants. The LUNARK habitat shows what can happen when the architect steps back and allows the extreme environment on the Moon and the high arctic to mold a habitat around human beings. LUNARK’s form was inspired by the patterns seen in a budding leaf as it unfolds and origami. It unfolds from a tight bud to a large ovoid shape with a rigid carbon fiber shell. Its exterior is tough as a tank while its interior is a cozy home with a sense of Nordic “hygge”.

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The main exterior of the habitat is made from a black glossy carbon fiber shell. The carbon-fiber structure’s sandwiched panels with a foam core for extra insulation. Carbon fiber is ideal because it’s lightweight – which is crucial for transport and unfolding – yet strong. The panels are connected by a white foldable composite rubber and the main load-bearing structure is an aluminum frame.

Starting from the size of a small car, the carbon fiber shell can unfold to 750 times its size. Inside, solar-powered circadian panels mimic the light cycles on Earth, aiming to improve astronauts’ sleep patterns and general well-being. It is designed to counteract monotony, claustrophobia, and psychological stress.

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With an inner volume of 17.2 sqm, LUNARK is designed to shelter two people at once. It is powered by a 1000 Ah solar-powered battery. It aspires to be a zero-waste shelter, leaving as little impact as possible on the environment. Inside the unfolding pod, there is space for a 3D printer (for printing spare parts if needed), stowage for batteries and water, and a living algae farm. LUNARK also has a series of in-built digital software systems, including a weather simulator to help break up the day-to-day monotony, and an algae reactor, to nurture and monitor a source of nutrition.

The main principle behind LUNARK is its expanding volume, as the structure expands 750% after transport while testing it was a great success as it was easy to unfold and strong enough to withstand the extreme environment. “The habitat worked beyond all expectations. The unfolding was possible by just two people and no heavy machinery – and in the extreme cold of the arctic. Furthermore, the interior design and spatial organization worked well. We are not trained professional astronauts, our tolerance is much lower. So we needed a much more pleasant living environment. We wanted to create a home, not a survival machine – and the habitat really ended up feeling like home,” adds Aristotelis.

Earlier in 2020, SAGA developed a prototype for LUNARK using the principles of Japanese origami folding with biomimicry. The two architects, Sebastian Aristotelis and Karl-Johan Sørensen, then went on a two-month mission to experience extreme isolation in northern Greenland where they tested LUNARK and its technologies themselves for future moon missions while enduring -30°c, hurricane winds, and hungry polar bears!

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In the two months spent in extreme isolation in Greenland, SAGA collected data about the performance of the unfolding origami structure and the circadian light panels that form the artificial sky inside the habitat. The duo also collected data about their psychological wellbeing, the impact of isolation, and how to deal with conflicts under extreme conditions which will help them make LUNARK even better for real missions.

“We wanted to make the most realistic simulation mission. If we as architects want to test the effect of architectural countermeasures in space we also need to simulate a realistic amount of stress on the participants (in our case ourselves). The cold arctic was the best bet for that. At the same time, the arctic has the most similar lighting conditions to the moon. It’s far away, remote and isolated so the experiment conditions forced our design to be easy to deploy,” said Aristotelis.

Having lived for months in conditions that resemble those in outer space, the two young architects collected a significant amount of data which they will analyze with a focus on human well-being and psychology. “The future looks great, our design worked better than expected which puts us on a solid trajectory to build in outer space,” Aristotelis concludes. SAGA is not only focused on making brilliant space architecture but is also putting the mental health of the astronauts at the core of their design which makes them stand out among all others on our planet!

Designer: SAGA Space Architects

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The post This modular origami tent built by space architects for the moon unfolds into 750 times it size! first appeared on Yanko Design.

This moon village plans to harness solar energy to sustain tourism in the future!

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In the south polar region of the Moon, architects at SOM–Skidmore, Owings & Merrill have envisioned a Moon Village. In collaboration with ESA–European Space Agency and MIT–Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the debut of Moon Village at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia kicked off an initiative of returning to the Moon five decades after humans first set foot on its surface. Visualized on the rim of the Moon’s Shackleton Crater, the location was chosen with consideration for the near-continuous daylight it receives throughout the lunar year.

Primarily conceived of as a cluster of research stations, Moon Village would host an array of functions spanning from sustainability research opportunities to the future prospect of Moon tourism. The south polar region of the Moon supports the possibility of a self-sufficient settlement, receiving near eternal sunlight that could be harnessed and stored for energy. This part of the Moon also hosts a variety of untouched matter that could offer insight into the Solar System’s early history as well as the general emergence of our larger universe.

Above all else, the structure of each individual hub comprises a modular frame and protective exterior to cater to the varied projects taking place inside. Most of the action would be taking place in each structure’s open centralized space, leaving room for the supportive framework, made from titanium alloy to be built into each building’s perimeter. Describing the structure’s blueprint, the architects at SOM say, “The innovative structural design of the modules is a hybrid rigid-soft system, made of two key elements: a rigid composite perimeter frame and an inflatable structural shell that integrates a multi-layer assembly with an environmental protection system.”

SOM decided on an inflatable shell and rigid, if not a minimal internal framework to easily transport each structure’s building materials by rocket. The combination of a rigid framework and inflatable structural shell, made from open-foam polyurethane and double-aluminized Mylar for insulation, was also chosen by SOM to adapt to internal and external environmental conditions, optimize airflow, and maintain transparent working spaces, while the free centralized volume promotes efficiency and mobility for research projects.

Designer: SOM–Skidmore, Owings & Merrill

Located in the south polar region of the Moon, SOM’s Moon Village would harness energy from the sun to generate their research facilities.

Comprising a cluster of Moon Villages, SOM intended for a human-centric design when developing Moon Village.

SOM envisions solar towers to form grids around Shackleton Crater and harness the sunlight’s energy.

Inside, an open centralized volume will leave plenty of room for efficient working and unrestricted mobility.

The main internal structure will be located in the perimeter of each structure.

An external, inflatable structural shell will protect Moon Village hubs from micrometeorites.

The internal framework of Moon Village’s research hubs will ensure the structure’s stability and soundness.

The 17th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia hosted Moon Village’s model debut.

These architectural renders give life to Elon Musk’s dreams of living in space!

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How many times have you heard “I just want to leave this planet for a while!” in the last two years? Very often, right? @sixnfive gives brings that sentiment to life with a collection of architectural renders called ‘What If?’ which is an ode to one of our greatest strengths – imagination. Imagination is a uniquely human ability to visualize unlimited possibilities starting with a simple question like “what if?” and the people who ask it often are the ones driving innovation. This collection explores the possible future move for mankind and probably what Musk has in mind through three elaborate acts

Act one: The Journey includes the meeting, the bedroom, and the dinner room. It represents our trip and the hope to arrive, but also the attachments of our mundane life, carrying memories of a previous reality. Act two: The settlements shows the Universe Edge, Summer House, and Landing Zone. It expresses our freedom to dream and imagine how our intergalactic holiday homes would look like. Act three: The Encounter, is based on human emotions of loving someone, missing someone and being guided. It is all about looking inward and looking from inside, the vestiges of our presence in an inhabited and quiet place.

It explores the perception of time, loneliness, and expectations but it also represents the hope to arrive. Yes, this is scientifically inaccurate but it expresses the freedom to dream and imagine via these zen visuals. Six N. Five is a contemporary studio working on advertising, editorial, and video commissions while finding time to create experimental work with CGI as a new medium for creative self-expression. Their refined imagination, poetic compositions, edgy minds, and sleek skills make the studio a hit amongst brands like Apple, Cartier, Cassina, Facebook, Givenchy, Ikea, Massimo Dutti, Microsoft, Nike, Samsung, Spotify, and many more!

Designer: Six N. Five

Nokia Luna Net is a conceptual communication system that will let you connect to WiFi on the moon!

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Dear reader, it was my childhood dream to be an astronaut but I wear glasses and that was enough to disqualify me so I instead started to read, write, listen, watch everything space as an attempt to fill the vacuum of a crushed dream -yes, like the vacuum in space. Do what you will with that fun fact about me but, as a kid with a vivid imagination who was obsessed with space travel, the first thing that always came to mind was “how will I call my friends and family back home?” And now with NASA’s Artemis Program in motion to bring humans back on the Moon by 2024, that question has grown up into “what equipment do we need to make faster contact with Earth?” Enter Nokia Luna Net – a smart communication system!

NASA is cooperating with external companies to build the needed equipment for this mission. For this design, Nokia was kept in mind as the partner building the first-ever Moon internet solution which is scheduled to launch in 2022. It consists of one main unit, the lander, and three smaller nodes. The lander and nodes spread out over a specific area that will have the wireless connection and thus build a mesh communication network. The system will be transported via a rocket after which it will reach the moon independently. Luna Net is autonomous and therefore it can set itself up – now only if my Earth WiFi did that too. Thermogenerators will be used for the power supply as they can deal with the extreme temperatures and the long days/nights on the moon. These generators are able to produce electricity from drastic temperature differences (+172 degrees Celcius during the day and -123 degrees Celcius during the night) and store it in rechargeable batteries.

The lander and the nodes are all equipped with VR cameras and LiDAR sensors (Light Detection and Ranging sensors are a remote sensing method used to examine surfaces). This combination allows the system to generate 3D content with detail and depth which gives us a much more realistic understanding of the situation/information. It also has a 360-degree camera and screen set up which lets users on Earth see live images/data from the moon. Rieder explores the design beyond just hardware, the next generation of lunar surface communication should look into how people on Earth can experience and learn about space in a new way even if they don’t get the chance to go up in space…I am sure I am not alone, on this planet or in galaxies far far away.

Designer: Johannes Rieder

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NASA + BIG are working on a sustainable 3D printed moon habitat using moon dust to reduce waste!

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While Mars missions are getting all the media and sci-fi attention, a trusty celestial friend is making a comeback as an option for hosting human colonies outside Earth – it is our moon! Bjarke Ingle’s BIG and 3D-printed building company ICON are working on Project Olympus – a mission to develop robotic construction for the moon.

Bjarke Ingles is the Elon Musk of the architectural world, he loves to explore the impossible and has a penchant for designs that can help save mankind right from his environmentally friendly buildings to Project Olympus. Project Olympus is about finding a way to create a 3D-printed infrastructure for living on the moon using materials found on its surface. Why do we need a habitat on the moon? So that we can launch sustained lunar exploration missions where the astronauts will be able to stay comfortably and carry out their research for extended time periods. The project has also enlisted SEArch+ (Space Exploration Architecture) after it received a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) government contract boosted with funding from NASA.

“With ICON we are pioneering new frontiers – both materially, technologically and environmentally. To explain the power of architecture, ‘formgiving’ is the Danish word for design, which literally means to give form to that which has not yet been given form. This becomes fundamentally clear when we venture beyond Earth and begin to imagine how we are going to build and live on entirely new worlds,” said Bjarke Ingels, founder of BIG.

Making a habitat base on the moon is no ordinary construction project. There are many factors at play – it is an inhospitable environment with only a fifth of Earth’s gravity and none of its atmosphere, plus it will have to be created almost entirely from locally available materials i.e. moon dust which will be sustainable and reduce waste! Working with NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, the team will use a simulant of moon soil to experiment with 3D-printable construction.

“3D printing with indigenous materials is a sustainable and versatile solution to off-world construction that will prove to be vital to our future here on Earth and in Outer Space. The habitat will be designed with the inherent redundancy required for extraterrestrial buildings, while also using groundbreaking robotic construction that uses only in-site resources with zero-waste left behind,” SEArch+ added. A by-product of all the developmental research and experiments being conducted for Project Olympus is that it will also reveal new ways to build more sustainably on Earth while reducing the construction industry’s carbon footprint.

BIG is a perfect fit for this project as they have previously designed a simulation of Mars called Mars Science City in Dubai. ICON too was a finalist in NASA’s 3D printed habitat challenge with many innovative projects under its belt and SEArch+ is an architecture firm that has worked with NASA for a long time on human-centered designs for space exploration making this a complete dream team. *Plays Frank Sinatra’s Fly Me to the Moon*

Designers: BIG, ICON, and SEArch+