Lunar Colony Dome View...

Lunar Colony Master Plan...

Lunar Colony Master Plan Diagrams

Lunar Locations...

We are quickly approaching midterm-review here in the Lunar Colony studio - I'll take this opportunity to go a little deeper into the location of the Lunar Colony and the dome. It's been stipulated that the dome size has been reduced from 25 miles in diameter to 2.5 miles. Using the lunar crater chart below, we determined an appropriate place to situate the dome.

This image is Lunar Chart: CLAVIUS LAC 126. It is located close to the south pole of the moon for purposes of providing optimal sunlight. [see picture below for close-up]

As you can see from the location chart, the location of the crater is in section 126 which is in the South-East direction of the South pole region of the moon.

Choosing an appropriately sized crater was left up to us as a group and after studying a few groups of craters [attempting to find a proper one as far south as possible], we decided upon Lunar Crater Lilius.

This image shows Lunar Crater "Lilius P" which is a satellite crater of the much larger Lilius. "Lilius P" is located at LATITUDE: 55.9 degrees S LONGITUDE 3.9 degrees E. "Lilius P" is 4km in diameter which is almost exactly 2.5 miles in diameter.

Preliminary Building Concepts...

Lunar Colony Transportation Proposal...

The following are schematic images of our proposal for a transportation system. The public transit system will be the only means of transportation in the dome

[with the exception of emergency vehicles.]

The "monorail" car will be able to accomodate anywhere from 4 to 20 people. The car acts as a membrane that reacts to the amount of people who board it [expanding and contracting to fit comfortably.]

Design details are still pending and will be further developed after the midterm-review.

More development details...

[housing example]

Some more sketches representing ideas we have about the colony design and details...

Additional housing concept

Preliminary design for public transportation services - hanging monorail that will be further developed into a transit system that wont impose upon the colony quite so much. Preferably something that has no wire system - possible track system proposed.

Lunar Colony Master Planning...

While we're still establishing a concrete master plan for the Lunar Colony, we are beginning to think about spaces and architectural elements under the dome. Below are some of our ideas that we are currently developing into our final Master Plan.

A beginning view of the dome and the very preliminary organizational elements of the dome such as docking/berthing portions for shuttle arrival and departure; general hydroponics areas, methods for emergency evacuation, subterranean factories and fabrication of modules [not mining as pictured], and also a general view of proposed platforms.

Proposed platforms and establishing a more three-dimensional view of the city.

Preliminary spatial diagram of proposed architecture within the dome - used as conceptual model for housing and other public buildings in the colony.


Working on specific details and further establishing permanant master plan.

Lunar Colony Master Plan Ideas...

The overall size of the dome has been reduced from 25 miles in diameter to 2.5 miles in diameter in an attempt to create a much more realistic amount of space that would exsist under the dome for a colony of 10,000 people.

Programmatic elements include:

Residential housing types for 10,000
Public places including: Visitors center, Cultural center, Hydroponic growing facilities,
Recreation/Fitness, and a K-8 school onsite.
The Civil buildings include a Courthouse/penal system building.
Industrial Facilities [mining and ISRU Facilities]
Commercial Facilities [small shopping areas]
Transportation facilities [electric car stations]\
Healthcare [hospital]
Farming/Hydroponics
Livestock [engineered livestock]
Religious [multi-denominational church]
Infrastructural [subterranean mining/factories]

Here are some preliminary sketches that we will further develop into a full-on Lunar Master plan.

This plan is a general geometric layout in an attempt to establish fractal elements within something that might eventually be considered an urban plan. These are simply to establish the idea of the fractal elements, they wont be used in our Lunar Colony master plan.

This concept is being considered a little more seriously. While the simple staggering of the modules can be used to create an organizational plan of sorts, we will use a much clearer mode of organization that isn't quite so random and that will estabilsh a clearer hierarchy within the colony limits.

This diagram is using the same method that was used in the previous diagram, only a color pattern was assigned to specific layers in order to create more depth within the individual layers. This was an attempt to take this methods product and create something more three-dimensional using a color pattern.

We will continue to develop this and other ideas... stay tuned.

Lunar Colony Plan Advancements...

The next step in the Lunar Colony design process is determining the urban structure. We've decided to take our module formation to next level and attempt to establish a fractal city. Below are some examples of what we eventually hope our fractal environment to resemble.

we will begin with a larger "modular form" that would be seen from space as colonists and visitors approach the dome upon arrival. As they get closer and closer the actual buildings and individual robotic elements, it would become clearer that the larger "modular form" seen from space would begin to become a fraction of itself and become smaller and smaller until it is recognized that it actually becomes individual building elements.

Preliminary Colony plans to come...

Schematic Design of Lunar Living

A schematic design of a basic living unit for the researchers. It is three stories high allowing for as much space as possible. The units are connected through a central "green space" or a recreation area. The separate buildings are also tied together through intricate webs of tensile fabric. Although in the drawing the units are subterranean, our idea has changed to entirely above ground. Public hydroponics will most likely be located in the "green space" area. The design is comprised entirely of our interlocking modules.

Lunar Chair Design

We designed a chair using our two basic modules. As you can see, there are several materials, foam, plastic, wood, and metal, demonstrating the different textures and uses of each module. We propose that octahedron is the structural member and the cube is the infill. The cube will change materials depending on its use within the lunar environment.

Modular Infrastructures...

Thus far in the development, we have decided to allow our skeletel octahedron to become the infrustructure of the entire development. They are assumed to be a strong, more dense, more robust material that would serve as structural support and the means for air, electrical, and plumbing transfer from one space to another.

We've embarked on a new prototype which attempts to employ a system of tubes at the outer edges of the main structural devices (octahedron). These tubes would serve as transport devices for air and water and would also allow for smaller mechanical and electrical wires to be run through in a neat and orderly manner.

With more details currently being developed, this preliminary infrastructural prototype rendering shows how the octahedron come together and essentially form long tunnels that will run the entire length of the room and eventually, the entire Colony.

Modular Prototype

Our modular prototype assignment was to develop a chair (rather, a general seating device) using scaled protypes of our modules. The development of our chair was a very important step in the process of understanding the constructability of our modules. During the construction of our chair, we took into consideration the development of a palette for future modular development. Our palette attempts to accomplish distinguishable changes in color, texture, strength, density, and other aspects. In the chair prototype we distinguished between the structural aspects through changes in color and we distinguished differences in texture by using a softer more comfortable material.

****Pictures Pending****

Modular Room Design

Modular Wall

This rendering is the expected outcome of the modular robots configuring themselves into a wall of sorts. This is the preliminary basis of all structural aspects of the Lunar Colony...

We are continuing to develop structural and architectural devices for the lunar colony as well as infrastructural details that will exist in the colony.

Rendering of full scale wall compared to human scale.

Example of interchangable LED light module. Exterior walls are completely solid [with the exception of window openings] - during the days of complete darkness in the Lunar Colony - Inhabitants can interchange insulating cube modules with LED light modules.

Preliminary Animation

A small animation (i realize it's terrible - its just for now until i can learn the software more adequately) to show how the panels will form into cubes and eventually stack themselves.

When one panel forms itself into a cube using magnetic forces, the top flap of the cube flips off and reaches over to the neighboring cube. Using magnets, the second cube is then flipped over onto the top of the first. Additional cubes will then be able to crawl up the side of the developing "wall" using the same magnetic forces and begin to form structure.

We are currently still developing how the skeletal octohedron will put themselves into place amongst the rest of the modules. (we assume it will probably work in a similar manner.)

***Currently working on animation of complete assembly***

Module MADNESS

viral module: how it creates itself

Team India found the most practical and efficient way to construct a lunar colony by assembling structures comprised of only two easily replicable viral modules. The two basic components of the proposed lunar structure are an octahedron combined with a cube. Both geometric objects can begin as a simple plane, such as a square, that can then be folded to create the module through robotic programming with magnetic assistance. With this realization, the octahedron can create itself from say a stack of square planes. We propose that each octahedron square panel will be geometrically comprised of 4 squares; each square is made of 2 triangles that have hinges along the diagonal seam. There will be four magnets each located in the center of the four perimeter edges that create the exterior of the square. One more magnet will be located in the center of the square. The four exterior magnets will turn on and become attracted to the center magnet, forcing the center magnet to rise vertically as the triangles with hinges fold against each other. This allows the octahedron to create itself by using only magnetic force, robotics, and simple geometry. The cube is also a simple folding shape and will recreate itself using the same method of robotics, folding, and magnetic force.

viral module: how it Moves along the moon

As seen in the animation, a few squares are connected so they created a “moving caterpillar” type module. With this system each square can inch its way, using magnetic forces and robotics, to a designated location within the dome and then start recreating itself. We propose that the squares lay flat on top of one another and then begin production starting from the bottom up. The cube caterpillar will follow each octahedron caterpillar and then begin the process of recreation.
viral module: unresolved ideas

• We are currently toiling with the idea that once the octahedrons are created they can easily latch onto the cube through an interlocking, sliding track system or some variation of this.



• One idea is to create a “male” track in the 90 degree angle of the octahedron and a “female” slider that fits into the track through sliding along the outer edges of the cube.



• Another idea, although more difficult, was to diagonally cut a few planes of the cubes so that only triangles remain; those triangles would then somehow slot or interlock with the triangles from the decahedron so form a new square plane.



• We are not sure on how the octahedron and the cube come together as they begin recreating themselves from the caterpillar form.



• One obvious idea is through magnetism, maybe the points of the octahedron connect with magnetism to create a very open wall, then the cubes inches its way up the wall, finds its place, folds to create itself, and then fits easily within the voids of the octahedrons.

changes...

.updates tomorrow.

Modular Systems

We are currently embarking upon the very complex process of creating a system of modular robotics which will eventually be used for structural development of the Lunar Colony.

Preliminary modular system :

This portion of the module would be manufactured in two pieces as flat panels. It would fold itself into the desired shape and then come together with an exact copy to create a skeletal form of an Octeherdon. In combination with panels folding to create cubes, a variety of forms can be created.

Currently, we are exploring the possibilities of panels being able to create and store themselves flat and then fold themselves into all three dimensional objects.

Further experimentation pending.