Futuricity

Looked at current research, theories and events that could one day lead to colonising the moon, due to our project being entirely based around a fictional city built on the moon, Gemma  looked at similar structures on earth, as well as theories into this actually being developed in the future. She also looked at current research, theories and events that could one day lead to colonising the moon.

Main topic: The Eden Project

Considering the main idea for Futuricity is that the human race has successfully installed a self sufficient colony on the moon, the Eden project seemed a good area for ideas.

However, initial research into the Eden project showed little about self sufficient colonies and more about plants and greenhouses. The project brought together thousands of species of plants from the three main climates from all over the world. The site is divided up into 3 ‘Biomes’; the Humid Tropics Biome, the Warm Temperate Biome, and the Roofless Biome which covers the local temperate climate in Cornwall.

The main appealing characteristic of the Eden project in relation to Futuricity is the structure. Although it may look flashy and futuristic, the domes do actually have a purpose; they act as giant greenhouses, enabling hundreds of tropical plants to be grown and nurtured in the UK successfully. This process would be a major part of a colony on the moon- space is cold and a means of generating and storing heat would be essential to life. There is no reason why greenhousing would not work on the moon, it would work the same way as it does on earth: the sun heats up the ground, which heats the air above it, which rises and is trapped by the greenhouse. On the surface of the Earth, even the Eden project needs extra controls for a consistent climate, by means of air vents when it is too hot, and heating when it is not warm enough. This is due to varying amounts of sunlight that reach the UK due to weather conditions. This should not be such an issue on the moon, as there is no atmosphere for weather to happen and the sunlight cover would be reliable, however the warmed land and air may not be enough to sustain the heat overnight. Another issue would be the daytime and nighttime lengths.

Looking at the structure, it is easy to see it is no normal greenhouse; each ‘panel’ is a bubble, rather than a plate of glass or plastic. The material they actually used is something called ethyl tetra fluoro ethylene (ETFE) foil which weighs less than 1% of the same volume of glass. The reason for the pillows is a lot of extra insulation without losing any of the direct sunlight and they have been developed to be adjustable. This means that on cold days when more insulation is needed, more air can be pumped into them, and on hotter days they can be deflated. This probably extends to overnight, when they would need more insulation to keep up the temperature.

Location is not important for these structures, the designers of Eden described them as “Giant bubbles that can be set down just about anywhere”. The entire site is ‘nestled’ in a crater, which would also be ideal for a colony on the moon, however a much larger structure would need to be constructed.  The initial ground composition of the crater was clay, which wasn’t nutritious enough to support much plant life. They enriched it by combining it with composted green waste. Again this system would be viable for a colony on the moon, as all organic household wastes would be recycled and used to produce the next season of food adding to the viable self-sustainability.

Main topic: The Eden Project

Considering the main idea for Futuricity is that the human race has successfully installed a self sufficient colony on the moon, the Eden project seemed a good area for ideas.

However, initial research into the Eden project showed little about self sufficient colonies and more about plants and greenhouses. The project brought together thousands of species of plants from the three main climates from all over the world. The site is divided up into 3 ‘Biomes’; the Humid Tropics Biome, the Warm Temperate Biome, and the Roofless Biome which covers the local temperate climate in Cornwall.

The main appealing characteristic of the Eden project in relation to Futuricity is the structure. Although it may look flashy and futuristic, the domes do actually have a purpose; they act as giant greenhouses, enabling hundreds of tropical plants to be grown and nurtured in the UK successfully. This process would be a major part of a colony on the moon- space is cold and a means of generating and storing heat would be essential to life. There is no reason why greenhousing would not work on the moon, it would work the same way as it does on earth: the sun heats up the ground, which heats the air above it, which rises and is trapped by the greenhouse. On the surface of the Earth, even the Eden project needs extra controls for a consistent climate, by means of air vents when it is too hot, and heating when it is not warm enough. This is due to varying amounts of sunlight that reach the UK due to weather conditions. This should not be such an issue on the moon, as there is no atmosphere for weather to happen and the sunlight cover would be reliable, however the warmed land and air may not be enough to sustain the heat overnight. Another issue would be the daytime and nighttime lengths.

Looking at the structure, it is easy to see it is no normal greenhouse; each ‘panel’ is a bubble, rather than a plate of glass or plastic. The material they actually used is something called ethyl tetra fluoro ethylene (ETFE) foil which weighs less than 1% of the same volume of glass. The reason for the pillows is a lot of extra insulation without losing any of the direct sunlight and they have been developed to be adjustable. This means that on cold days when more insulation is needed, more air can be pumped into them, and on hotter days they can be deflated. This probably extends to overnight, when they would need more insulation to keep up the temperature.

Location is not important for these structures, the designers of Eden described them as “Giant bubbles that can be set down just about anywhere”. The entire site is ‘nestled’ in a crater, which would also be ideal for a colony on the moon, however a much larger structure would need to be constructed.  The initial ground composition of the crater was clay, which wasn’t nutritious enough to support much plant life. They enriched it by combining it with composted green waste. Again this system would be viable for a colony on the moon, as all organic household wastes would be recycled and used to produce the next season of food adding to the viable self-sustainability.

Secondary topic: Moon Colonisation

According to the BBC, humans could be living in a colony on the moon within the next 20 years. This is a lot quicker than assumed, however it is mentioned to be an “outpost for visiting astronauts” and a “human base for preparing for colonisation of the moon” rather than an entire moon city. It appears the delay in such an achievement is a combination of funding and support. A project of this scale would require international co-operation, which would be difficult.

The San Francisco Chronicle has an interesting topic in the Open Forum, where Scott Sheppard discusses the possible future of Space Exploration. In his opinion, the enthusiasm for such projects had died down a lot since the Space Race as a result of the Cold War. Also, as current knowledge stands, the economic benefits from colonising the moon, at least residentially, as Space Tourism is still a viable business. If the situation were different, and at least one of the other planets or their natural satellites had the potential for economic benefit, a chain reaction of space exploration would occur. In colonising the first planet, the human race would gain huge technological advancements in space travel, opening up the opportunity for the next move in space colonisation. After we had progressed through all of the valuable planets in our solar system, we would begin to look for another star, with a system with beneficial planets. As our solar system is, there is nowhere that would benefit capitalism, and Scott Sheppard says our quest for Space Exploration is stunted because we have hit the question, “Where do we send humans next?” He compares the situation to that of Antarctica. Even though the continent was discovered nearly 100 years ago, there are still no permanent domestic human colonies. There are research centres and a handful of scientists, some more permanent than others, but because there is no economical benefit from living in Antarctica, it just hasn’t happened.  The same can be true for the moon: research centres and scientists but no residential citizens.

One of the reasons for the lack of economical benefits is the deficiency in heavy metals. This is due to the collision process that actually formed the moon. In looking for platinum group metals (PGMs), there is a Wingo theory that such metals would be found on the moon, as a result of asteroid impacts and their debris. Until recently it was believed that most of the asteroid would vaporise on impact. However using modern computer modelling and instances of asteroids falling on earth, a significant portion of material survives. As the moon has much lower gravity, the impacts would be slower and elements of the asteroids more likely to survive. The significance of PGMs is platinum’s thermodynamic properties which enable it to be used in producing fuel cells.

As for resources, very recently the Hubble Telescope has been used to identify minerals on the moon which could be used as a source of oxygen. Scientists examined ‘high-resolution ultra-violet’ photographs of the moon’s surface for the first time. The mineral found is ilmenite, which is described as a form of titanium oxide, from which oxygen can easily be obtained using chemical and heat processes.

The Beijing Lunar Village Aeronautics Science Co Ltd have started selling acres of land on the moon.  For the equivalent of $37, you will be presented with a certificate of property ownership for an acre of land on the moon, including rights to the land and minerals up to a depth of 3km. The chief executive of the company says “We define it as a kind of novelty gift with the potential of unlimited increase in value” and claims to have found a loophole whereby individuals and corporations may own land on the moon even though governments may not.

According to the BBC, humans could be living in a colony on the moon within the next 20 years. This is a lot quicker than assumed, however it is mentioned to be an “outpost for visiting astronauts” and a “human base for preparing for colonisation of the moon” rather than an entire moon city. It appears the delay in such an achievement is a combination of funding and support. A project of this scale would require international co-operation, which would be difficult.

The San Francisco Chronicle has an interesting topic in the Open Forum, where Scott Sheppard discusses the possible future of Space Exploration. In his opinion, the enthusiasm for such projects had died down a lot since the Space Race as a result of the Cold War. Also, as current knowledge stands, the economic benefits from colonising the moon, at least residentially, as Space Tourism is still a viable business. If the situation were different, and at least one of the other planets or their natural satellites had the potential for economic benefit, a chain reaction of space exploration would occur. In colonising the first planet, the human race would gain huge technological advancements in space travel, opening up the opportunity for the next move in space colonisation. After we had progressed through all of the valuable planets in our solar system, we would begin to look for another star, with a system with beneficial planets. As our solar system is, there is nowhere that would benefit capitalism, and Scott Sheppard says our quest for Space Exploration is stunted because we have hit the question, “Where do we send humans next?” He compares the situation to that of Antarctica. Even though the continent was discovered nearly 100 years ago, there are still no permanent domestic human colonies. There are research centres and a handful of scientists, some more permanent than others, but because there is no economical benefit from living in Antarctica, it just hasn’t happened.  The same can be true for the moon: research centres and scientists but no residential citizens.

One of the reasons for the lack of economical benefits is the deficiency in heavy metals. This is due to the collision process that actually formed the moon. In looking for platinum group metals (PGMs), there is a Wingo theory that such metals would be found on the moon, as a result of asteroid impacts and their debris. Until recently it was believed that most of the asteroid would vaporise on impact. However using modern computer modelling and instances of asteroids falling on earth, a significant portion of material survives. As the moon has much lower gravity, the impacts would be slower and elements of the asteroids more likely to survive. The significance of PGMs is platinum’s thermodynamic properties which enable it to be used in producing fuel cells.

As for resources, very recently the Hubble Telescope has been used to identify minerals on the moon which could be used as a source of oxygen. Scientists examined ‘high-resolution ultra-violet’ photographs of the moon’s surface for the first time. The mineral found is ilmenite, which is described as a form of titanium oxide, from which oxygen can easily be obtained using chemical and heat processes.

The Beijing Lunar Village Aeronautics Science Co Ltd have started selling acres of land on the moon.  For the equivalent of $37, you will be presented with a certificate of property ownership for an acre of land on the moon, including rights to the land and minerals up to a depth of 3km. The chief executive of the company says “We define it as a kind of novelty gift with the potential of unlimited increase in value” and claims to have found a loophole whereby individuals and corporations may own land on the moon even though governments may not.