Project team: Thomas Frings, Petra Gruber, Barbara Imhof,
Melanie Klähn
University of Technology Vienna, "Transformation - structure/space
- bionic approaches for [space]architecture"
Abstract
Spaceflight and the universe have often fascinated humankind. They have inspired fiction and visions, frequently focusing on the spaceship as a means of transportation, an indispensable prerequisite for man to survive in a hostile environment outside our own planet’s atmosphere and travel through the solar system.
But what does it mean for someone to be distant from their native planet
for a prolonged period of time? What are the technical requirements to
be met by a spaceship that is primarily a machine but should also provide
an adequate habitat for its crew?
It is beyond doubt that long-term mission crews are exposed to both physical
and psychological stressors that can cause a mission to fail. The architect
is to find ways to combine purely functional aspects, such as life support,
with human needs that are neither rational nor constant. How can these
conflicting requirements be reconciled?
This paper discusses the vision of a spaceship commuting between the planets
of Mars and Earth to transfer crews and supplies. The project focuses
on the spatial perception of weightlessness and the advantages of zero
gravitation, as well as on human-machine interaction and stimulation.
From a holistic point of view, the spaceship as such should not just be
regarded as be a machine, but as part of an interstellar installation
between Mars and Earth.
The architectural design proposal for a future Mars spaceship is based on three main conceptional ideas:
1. To create an architecture using new paradigms, derived not only from
specific mission objectives and environmental conditions but also from
experimental forms of architecture, leaving Earth-stereotypes
2. To identify and make use of the advantages of living in zero gravity
incorporating artificial gravity facilities for long duration missions.
3. To create an interior space for human necessities inside a machine
– the space ship - for an environment that is continuously stimulating
its inhabitants; in search of creating a living and emotional space,
as well as, a space to live in.
The project described uses the following future mission scenario: The
Moon has been colonized since 2045 and its resources are mined, in order
to be processed directly on the surface. In 2075 Mars exploration has
reached the next step and humankind has managed to build a permanent
Martian research outpost. Therefore a new form of transportation is
of essence in order to exchange crews and supplies. The required spaceship
parts are produced on the Moon’s surface and assembled in the
Lunar orbit. From there the spaceship takes off towards Mars with a
crew of eight astronauts.
The proposed design deals with advanced propulsion and radiation protection
technologies and with an architecture that interlinks the spaces of
the habitat in a functional circulation like a system of cycles. The
need for a technically well-functioning system is as eminent as the
ease of socio-psychological stressors in long duration space flight.
The main technical drivers are incorporated into the architectural layout
as well as other equally important drivers (e.g. socio-psychological
stressors), including:
- The human desire for socializing, communicating and being close to
others as well the direct contrast to his/her desire for privacy, meditation
and individualism
- Spatial qualities derived from the research, evaluation and interpretation
of the fact that the journey to Mars takes several months, a long time
that – far away from Earth, might seem like an eternity.
- The seemingly unnoticed physical moving of the spaceship – time
and distance
- The absence of external influences, such as weather or the change
of time of day
Design solutions will be demonstrated including possibilities for various
interior rearrangements, based on a form of communication between the
crew and the ship.
