Since we were recently able to witness Space-X launch 2 astronauts into space I thought it would be fitting to discuss the possibility of architecture and living in space.
One solution to creating a space habitat is to make it stationary upon a surface such as the Moon or Mars. Architect, Xavier De Keselier, gave a TED Talk where he describes his habitat design that can be created by using local resources from Mars. The harsh environment forces the habitat to be covered by a cave like structure that would be 3D printed around an inflatable habitat. Click the link below to take a look a his design:
Another solution is not a surface habitat, but instead an orbiting cylinder known as the O'Neill Cylinder. This is a concept presented by Princeton physicist Gerard K. O’Neill in 1976 in his book “The High Frontier.” This concept is 2 counter rotating cylinders to create gravity through centripetal force that humans could live in without experiencing the long term effects from anti-gravity. One potential down fall of this concept is that the structure is so large that sending the materials needed for the build would be too difficult. A lot of the materials would potentially need to be harvested from space materials. See the reference link below to read more about this idea:
O'Neill Cylinder - Painting by Rick Guidice courtesy of NASA.
There are multiple ideas and controversy of the right way to go about inhabiting space already. Jeff Bezos, Owner of Blue Origin, actually studied under Professor O'Neill at Princeton and is in favor of O'Neill's idea, but Elon Musk Owner of Space-X is opposed. Check out the article below for more information on this:
Both companies are on the quest to take paying customers into space and have dreams of colonizing space. It seems like a dream that is so far away, but it could be closer than we think.
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