BIG has partnered with ICON, a developer of advanced construction technologies, and with SEArch+, to begin designing Project Olympus, a sustainable lunar habitat that will be the first human foray into extra-terrestrial construction. Project Olympus includes robust structures that provide better thermal, radiation, and micrometeorite protection than metal or inflatable habitats can offer.
In partnership with NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, ICON will test lunar soil simulant with various processing and printing technologies. The tests will help design, develop, and demonstrate prototype elements for a possible future full-scale additive construction system that could print infrastructure on the moon.
“Building humanity’s first home on another world will be the most ambitious construction project in human history and will push science, engineering, technology, and architecture to literal new heights,” said Jason Ballard, Co-founder and CEO of ICON, in a release. “NASA’s investment in space-age technologies like this can not only help to advance humanity’s future in space, but also to solve very real, vexing problems we face on Earth. We are honored to begin our research and development on ICON’s ‘Project Olympus’ and the ‘Olympus Construction System.’”
Project Olympus is BIG’s second “space architecture” project following Mars Science City, currently being developed in Dubai as a prototype for exploring the building technologies that humanity would need to live and thrive on Mars.
Related Stories
| Apr 2, 2012
Sachse Construction helps complete Salt Lake City’s City Creek Center
Sachse was hired to complete store build-outs at City Creek Center.
| Apr 2, 2012
Culver joins Sasaki as managing director
Culver will work closely with Sasaki firm leaders on issues of strategy, marketing, and business development.
| Apr 2, 2012
EB-5 investment funds new Miramar, Fla. business complex
Riviera Point Holdings breaks ground on $17 million office center.
| Mar 30, 2012
New windows and doors revitalize older buildings
With their improved aesthetics, energy efficiency, and durability, replacement windows and doors can add significant value to a renovation project.
| Mar 30, 2012
18 handy tablet apps for AEC professionals
Check out these helpful apps for everyday design and construction tasks. Our favorite: MagicPlan, which uses GPS to help you measure and draw a floor plan of any room.
| Mar 29, 2012
U.K.’s Manchester Airport tower constructed in nine days
Time-lapse video shows construction workers on the jobsite for 222 continuous hours.
| Mar 29, 2012
Roller shade operating system wins IF Product Design Award
Design experts in the iF jury recognized the engineering invested in the RB 500 Roller Shade, including a metal clutch with a patented construction, a durable zamac housing with polished finish, and a chain drive unit that excels in maximum operating comfort.
| Mar 29, 2012
Lehigh engineering student wins Thornton Tomasetti Foundation Awards Scholarship
The scholarship is awarded annually to a graduate student in structural engineering deemed by the department to have the potential to make an impact in the field professionally.
| Mar 29, 2012
Construction completed on Las Vegas’ newest performing arts center
The Smith Center will be the first major multi-purpose performance center in the U.S. to earn Silver LEED certification.
| Mar 29, 2012
Apartments provide permanent housing for California homeless
Gonzalez Goodale Architects designed complex to embrace community and engender sense of pride among residents.