NASA 3D Printed Habitat Challenge

If there was life on Mars, where would people live – and what would it look like? 

We set out to design the perfect habitat for space explorers on the red planet as part of NASA’s international 3D Printed Habitat Challenge.

Our team, in collaboration with structural engineers Eckersley O’Callaghan (EOC), was shortlisted to design the world’s first human home on Mars. In our design, an external shell made from local Martian regolith would be built in advance by autonomous robots before exploration teams arrived to construct the interior – a series of inflatable pods’ containing everything for work and life on Mars.

Our aim was to bring a more human element to space design, typically all about maximum efficiency and performance. Our habitat goes far beyond just ticking the boxes for safety and survival. It’s a home away from home where astronauts can carry out the most important work in the history of space exploration.

Hassell and EOC were shortlisted as a top 10 entry in the challenge.

Client

NASA

Location

Mars

Status

Temporary

Year

2018

Collaborators

Eckersley O’Callaghan

Design team

Xavier De Kestelier, Jonathan Irawan, Shawn Wu, Xuanzhi Huang, Nikolaos Argyros, David Brown
Render of a habitat built on the surface of Mars.

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