Architect firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill has unveiled a proposal for a permanent community on the moon, comprising inflating pods that balloon up to accommodate more inhabitants as the population grows.
SOM teamed up with the European Space Agency (ESA) and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to design Moon Village as "the first permanent human settlement on the lunar surface".
"The project presents a completely new challenge for the field of architectural design," said SOM design partner Colin Koop in a project statement.
Unveiled 9 April 2019, the proposal aims to resolve a number of complications associated with living on the planet. Resiliency, self-sufficiency and use of the moon's existing resources are among the key aims. Moon Village comprises a collection of connected, inflatable pods
"The Moon Village must be able to sustain human life in an otherwise uninhabitable setting," said Koop. "We have to consider problems that no one would think about on Earth, like radiation protection, pressure differentials, and how to provide breathable air."
The cross-disciplinary teams drew on their range of experience for the project. As masterplanner, SOM oversaw architecture, engineering, urban planning, and sustainable design. ESA provided expertise from the European Astronaut Centre and the European Space Research and Technology Centre, and MIT involved the faculty's aerospace engineering department.
Moon Village is env...