This video presents a concept design for a Mars Resource Utilization and Botany Research Station.

Architecture and engineering design solutions for research, mining, farming and manufacturing on Mars are crucial for a sustainable permanent human colony.

The extreme conditions on Mars, such as unbreathable atmosphere, weather, surface temperature, and gravity, constrain all human activities (e.g.; farming and manufacturing). Therfore, we need to explore extreme environment design approaches, which will use resources such as water, breathable air, minerals, metals, and power as efficiently as possible.

Basic Design Info:

– Central Dome Diameter: 25 meters

– Module dimensions : H: 10 m x Depth 10m x Length (Variable)

– Assembly: Compact during transport, expand in length after deployment and assembly

– Skin: Alloy deployable substructure incorporated between ribbed main structures. In its compact state, the ribbed structures house a packed multi-layered membrane that unpacks and expands upon on-site deployment and assembly. The membrane’s exterior is designed with slots to hold tiled 3D printed Mars Regolith, which acts as the solid protective outer shield and temperature control layer.

– Architectural and Interior: After deployment and assembly, the modules’ interiors are flexible in their space usage. With a 9.5 x 9.5 meters of clear space in the cross-section, the interior can support many interior space configurations (e.g.; two-floor configuration with single or double corridors, two-floor configuration with partial central, end or side open double space, two floors with upper loft configuration, offset core wall configuration and module wide open-space with cat-walks connecting the end nodes). The interior configurations are dependent on the function or type of lab they are used for. The main ceiling and floor of the modules are designed to house the main technical and subsystem networks. The top and bottom technical spaces are connected at the sides of the module through the hulled spaces in the ribbed structures (i.e. the space that before assembly housed the undeployed multi-layered membrane).

– Life support: Due to the Mars conditions, the station is designed with, multiple redundancy systems and subsystems including life support. Each module is equipped with an integrated emergency life support system capable of supporting 4 individuals for 72 hours. In addition, each module stores level A hazmat suits at its’ nodes that support staff during containment and rescue.

– Emergencies: In the extreme cases of emergency (e.g.; breach or contamination), the isolation protocol will trigger the isolation mode, where detonated charges will cut off the breached modules to isolate and protect the rest of the station and staff.