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Habitats for space exploration

Over the last decade, Space Architecture – the theory and practice of designing and building an environment for humans in outer space – has become an emerging issue in the context of future space exploration, and is increasingly seen as a fundamental requirement for supporting long-term space settlement and exploration on other planetary bodies.

Developing space architecture

This project, Multidisciplinary Investigation of System using Sintering Instrumentation Of the Next generation (MISSION), is a multidisciplinary research, which draws on ideas grounded in the Built Environment discipline.

The research has rich implications for developing a better understanding of Space Architecture both theoretically and practically with a construction aspect. Through exploring and exploiting the links between the fields of the Built Environment, Engineering Design, Manufacturing, Materials, Space Engineering, and Planetary and Space Sciences through interdisciplinary research, the proposed project would usher in a new era of Built Environment technology, which changes the current paradigm of architectural and constructional culture.

This ground-breaking project will address important challenges of construction processes in an extra-terrestrial environment, investigate alternative construction processes and materials for Space Architecture – particularly on the Moon and Mars – and develop an appropriate Additive Manufacturing based robotic construction process.

Developing terrestrial architecture

It will also investigate potential terrestrial applications, e.g. (i) new human habitation in extreme areas including undersea and Antarctic environments, and (ii) improved living standards in the developing world.

The success of the proposed research would eventually support long-term scientific research on and settlement of other planetary bodies beyond the Moon and Mars. We believe therefore our research would contribute significantly to the future by providing a foundation of one of humanity’s oldest dreams: Space Odyssey, a common interest across nations.

You can find out more on the MISSION website.

 Key academics