GREAT SPACE
Nasa reveals five amazing ways we could live on Mars – with home designs including 3D-printed rock pods and inflatable bases
If you believe Elon Musk, the first Mars settlers will land on the Red Planet in 2020 – and now Nasa's revealed where they may end up living.
Concept designs include a habitat that can deploy rovers to fetch local resources for construction and a multi-storied cylindrical building built from Martian rock.
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The five 3D models won their creators a prize pool of $100,000 – with the top two teams snagging over $20,000 each – in the latest leg of Nasa's 3D-Printed Habitat Centennial Challenge.
As its title suggests, the competition centres on Red Planet abodes that can be built autonomously (likely by robots) using specialist software like 3D printers and Martian materials.
The teams had to take into account the atmosphere and elements on Mars (including micro-gravity, solar radiation and dust storms) when creating their habitats.
As a result, the blueprints encompass things like the structure's thickness, pressure sealing, air filtering and heating, according to .
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The habitats also had to have enough room to house four astronauts for up to a year, with extra space to accommodate the machinery and paraphernalia (think science labs and heavy-terrain vehicles) a mission like this would require.
They were judged on completeness, layout, 3D-printing viability and aesthetics by a panel of cross-industry experts from Disney to Nasa.
Next up, the models will be transformed into scale miniatures.
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Here are the details on the third phase winners:
- First place design 'Zorpheus' has the pod-building process taking place inside a large lander using "Martian concrete" to create the structures.
- Runner-up AI SpaceFactory's vertical, vase-shaped building focuses on thermal expansion and insulation but also features cool extras like a gym and play area.
- Bronze winner Kahn-Yates' concept is pocked with holes that let in natural light and includes a spiral staircase that stretches across its exterior.
- In Fourth place, SEArch+/Apis Cor's design features two independent pressurised areas designed to maximise light and minimise radiation exposure.
- Northwestern University's habitat is a dome-shaped structure built upon an inflatable vessel with all the comforts of home (like a kitchen and multiple bedrooms).
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“We are encouraging a wide range of people to come up with innovative designs for how they envision a habitat on Mars,” said Lex Akers, dean of the Caterpillar College of Engineering and Technology at Bradley University, NASA’s partner in the challenge.
“The virtual levels allow teams from high schools, universities and businesses that might not have access to large 3D printers to still be a part of the competition because they can team up with those who do have access to such machinery for the final level of the competition.”
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