A team of architects has designed an extraterrestrial concept of a Martian colony that will have
Elon Musk dreaming of a penthouse suite on the red planet. The concept attempts to take a proactive approach on future colonization, in light of how humanity has damaged and depleted our current home here on Earth.
Humans have gazed toward the heavens for quite some time, with the thought of one day inhabiting a distant planet. The issue in the past has always been the lack of technology to make it possible, but that has all changed in the last decade or so.
NASA and
commercial companies, such as SpaceX and Blue Origin, are working toward making extraterrestrial inhabitation a reality in the coming decades. NASA's Artemis missions look to put human boots back on the surface of the Moon, with the intention of building a base station in order to serve as a mid-point for
future manned missions to Mars. The fact we are approaching an age where a Martian colony is actually even feasible, has inspired people to design what they envision those future colonies to look like.
Genesis V.2 is a extraterrestrial concept designed by architects Burak Celik, Naz Kaplan and Zeynep Ege Odabasi, and outlines what it could be like to live on Mars. The Genesis V.2 name was derived from the NASA Genesis mission that was searching for our cosmic origins. The team aimed to design a sustainable system that has the ability to adapt to the current and upcoming conditions on the red planet. The concept also takes into consideration new colonization scenarios, with its circular form that sits on the natural craters of Mars.
The approach the team took in its design takes into account how humanity has treated its current home planet. The concept takes a proactive approach in attempting to preserve the natural landscape of Mars, as well as its resources. It seeks to utilize the natural craters that exist on the surface to minimize humanity's footprint, and maximize the adaptability the settlement to different craters. This is achieved by attaching the main structure to the crater using connection joints around the main ring, along with a screw-like end of the main tower that is anchored to the lowest level of the crater.
By taking this approach in design, the team also created a means of being able to move the circular form if needed. The outer ring which the units are placed and the central tower from which the production and circulation occurs, are the foundations of the design. So, if by chance relocation is needed due to colony growth, the structure can be easily detached and re-attached to a larger crater allowing more growth.
The main objective of the design is to provide maximum productivity, while using minimal resources. This is achieved by allowing the structure to respond to the changes in light, temperature, and weather conditions via its repositioning parts. As the structure seeks out the optimal position to serve the production within its system, various other technologies are used as well as biofuel production through algae farming.
Zeynep Ege Odabasi,
Design Lead for Genesis V.2, states, "Genesis V.2 thrives to reflect how our first steps into a new world should be: sustainable to establish a respectful relationship between us and the new home and adaptable to different scenarios humanity could face in this new home to achieve the maximum efficiency in expanding our community towards a brighter future."
