Life on Mars: Palimpsests of the Forthcoming Martian Res Publica
Abstract
Mars is set to be the new frontier of humanity, and as a result poses a unique set of architectural and engineering challenges to be overcome. Interest into both small and large-scale Martian settlements has greatly increased in the past several years, however many of these projects exist as sole entities within a foreign landscape, ignorant of site, culture, or temporal context. They cannot be considered towns and do not produce a valid form of public space as we know it. This project aims to explore and suggest an alternative: a set of architectural frameworks based on vetted engineering solutions and urban design principles from which a uniquely Martian res publica could grow and thrive, all within the context of a long-term colonization and terraforming effort. Through diagrams, drawings, and written text, this thesis explores the growth of a settlement on Mars at three different stages of terraformation and attempts to understand the driving forces that shape how Martians might live.
Collections
Cite this version of the work
Nicholas Michael Puersten
(2022).
Life on Mars: Palimpsests of the Forthcoming Martian Res Publica. UWSpace.
http://hdl.handle.net/10012/18769
Other formats