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M.A.A.E. OVERVIEW The Mars Artificial Atmospheric Envelope (M.A.A.E.) is designed to be a resilient shell to Mars’s extreme conditions while taking advantage of advanced 3D printing technologies and available natural resources. A human centric design approach to the architecture provides the inhabitants with psychological and physiological well-being. M.A.A.E. is to be located inside the Gale crater, a site selected for its layers of in-situ material, ability to shelter the astronauts from extreme windstorms, potential as a source of water, and be in the vicinity of the curiosity rover. The crater’s location is near the equator where the temperature can reach up to 70 degrees Fahrenheit, making it less harsh than other areas on Mars. In this location, Martian regolith is made up of finer particles, which helps the additive manufacturing process. The number of resource possibilities of the site creates the best possible opportunity for 3D printing a Martian habitat.
PHASE ONE
PHASE TWO
PHASE THREE
HORIZONTAL ORGANIZATION
VERTICAL ORGANIZATION
FINAL ORGANIZATION
Work Space
LIVING SPACE
LIVING SPACE
VISUAL COMPOSITION
PROGRAMMATIC ORGANIZATION
Radiation Protection
Impact Protection
REGOLITH LAYER
INFLATABLE SEAL FOR HABITABLE SPACE
POLYMER LAYER
ENVELOPE
Vertical + Horizontal Access
DUAL ACCESS
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PLANS
Bathroom Bedrooms
ECLSS Support System B
Support System A AIR SUPPLY DUCT
CARBOND DIOXIDE REMOVAL
N
N H
ELECTRIC HEATER
FAN SEPERATOR
FIRE PROTECTION
(ARS) HUMIDITY SEPARATOR
H
N
HYDROGEN DUMP VACUUM VENT
NITROGEN SUPPLY TANK
ODOR FILTERATION
OXYGEN SUPPLY TANK
POTABLE WATER STORAGE
POWER REACTANT STORAGE & DISTRIBUTION
SENORS (TEMPERATURE, OXYGEN, FIRE)
TEMPERATURE CONTROLS UNIT
Support System C VACUUM VENT
WASTE WATER TANK
WATER FILTERATION
WATER PUMP ISOLATION VALVE
Laboratory Space
Capsule WATER SUPPLY
Kitchen
0
10 40 5
20
ROVER + IRON ORE PROCESS
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Upper strut Mounts
excavator
Coil Spring
Pivot
Flexible Honeycomb design Deformable Wheel Sheer Band
Rover Tires System
Suspension Strut
feed bin
ball mill
Feeder Tubes
cONTINUOUS tRACK Motor 6 aXIS rOBOTIC aRM Threaded Kevlar Tread
wORKER bEES
polymer chamber
h2o chamber
iron oxide chamber
remaining soil chamber
Mixing Chamber
LED Lights
Worker Bees
mixing chamber
nozzle 1
Ball Mill/Crusher
H2O Chamber Feeder Bin
Excavator
nozzle 2
nozzle 3
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M.A.A.E. IN SECTION
COMPOSITION + USE The core area acts as the primary working lab space with opportunities for entertainment and physical activity, which allows for improved happiness and stress reduction, as well as boosting physical health. The lab space occupies the center of the habitat on the ground level. Its defining feature is a holographic command center where the users can work individually or as a team on various projects surrounding a large table. On three sides of the lab space are various lab stations, two flexible and one larger stationary lab. By being the largest space, it is also the structure’s most open area and allows for the most movement and energy. Utilizing taller ceiling heights, including a double-height space in the central core, the habitat’s volume allows for easier depth perception adjustment, minimization of space motion sickness, adjustment to a new gravitational level. The double-height common lab area also serves to provide a sensory break from the confined limits of astronaut life by making space feel larger and less constricting to reduce feelings of claustrophobia.
Interior render
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M.A.A.E. ISO
FORM + FUNCTION The overall form of the structure utilizes a central core and three bays allowing for delineation in private versus public space. The programmatic division provides areas of respite and allows people to come together or be alone depending on their needs. There are two entrances to the habitat. The first entrance acts as an egress outlet through the top of the habitat via the Orion space shuttle. It will be converted into an airlock, large enough to store their space suits, that will allow the users to pass to move from mars into the habitat and vice verse. This space’s primary function is that of an observation tower. Moving from the viewing observatory into the structure, the space is relatively open with a set of three floating floors that tie into the interior hexagonal structure for stability. These floors provide opportunities for flex spaces. A user can go to one of these floors as an “away space” - an area where they can L O O K out a window, EXCERCISE, or read a book.
Focus Laboratory A focus lab equipped with holographic imaging capabilities for the study and analysis of martian rock formations. Here nature, science and artistic play exist within the same realm.
Martian Habitat
Private
SHARED
Kitchen This will serve as a innovative community driving space to meet the nourishment needs of the astronauts.
ECLS SYSTEMS
VEGETATION + ENTRY
Transformable Bedroom/ Personal workstation Astronauts have access to a folding bed and work station specifically made for the various tasks they need to complete throught the day. Astronauts can make use of the newly activated space.
bENCH
dESK
SHARED SPACE
The Mars Artificial Atmospheric Envelope (M.A.A.E.) is designed to be a
resilient shell to Mars’s extreme conditions while taking advantage of advanced 3D printing technologies and available natural resources. A human centric design approach to the architecture provides the inhabitants with psychological and physiological well-being. M.A.A.E. is to be located inside the Gale crater, a site selected for its layers of in-situ material, ability to shelter the astronauts from extreme windstorms, potential as a source of water, and be in the vicinity of the curiosity rover. The crater’s location is near the equator where the temperature can reach up to 70 degrees Fahrenheit, making it less harsh than other areas on Mars. In this location, Martian regolith is made up of finer particles, which helps the additive manufacturing process. The number of resource possibilities of the site creates the best possible opportunity for 3D printing a Martian habitat. Structure
M.A.A.E. will be conducted in phases to achieve habitat. Phase one incorporates 3D
printing of a base structural system made out of in-situ materials that can withstand being exposed to the Martian atmosphere. First a bearing plate ring footing and shallow isolated pier footings will be additively manufactured to connect a series of three support columns to prevent any structural deformation from lateral and gravitational forces. This will also provide a foundation geometrically optimized for the shaping of the habitat through the use of placed magnetic anchors. The top of the columns are supported by a compression ring that acts as a docking station for the shuttle in the next phase.
Phase two will dock a spacecraft, based on the Orion, to the top of the tripod structure,
which then deploys an inflatable, pressurized shell that has mapped on its surface a series of closed grommets and will act as an air lock between the Martian atmosphere and M.A.A.E. As the shell inflates, a three-winged housing structure takes form. The inflatable is then connected to the Martian surface via a series of closed grommets that magnetize to the isolated pier footings. Once the inflatable shell is in place, it will be scanned by the 3D printer using the mapped grommets to determine its positioning, and begin to print a honeycomb outer envelope from a flexible in-situ plastic. This outer structure serves to surround and protect the inner inflatable shell.
Martian regolith will be packed into 70% of the honeycomb to provide a thermal and at-
mospheric barrier against extreme weather and radiation. The 3D printed plastic will be able to protect against more radiation than the regolith alone reducing the thickness of the exterior shell. The remaining 30% will act as a shock absorbing layer to protect from any external impact and damage, similar to a non-pneumatic tire. Inside the inflatable, a hexagonal structure will be 3D printed to provide a framework for wall, floor, and ceiling panels. This includes
a raised access flooring that sits above the inflatable’s base atop magnetic cylinders anchoring it to the piers. This will allow access to the inflatable in case of repairs as well as in-floor ECLSS systems. Upon completion of the 3D printed shells, a final phase launches the astronauts, support systems, and additional research equipment to be placed within the habitat.
The hexagon/honeycomb shape was selected due to its strength to efficiency ratio
and its smallest total perimeter. In nature, bees use hexagons to construct their hive because it requires the least amount of material, saving time and energy, as the symmetry of the hexagon reduces the complexity of the structure. It is also used to keep consistent sizing, allowing for multiple bees to work on different construction areas at the same time. Utilizing this natural occurrence sets up the precedence for using multiple 3D printers simultaneously in man-made construction. 3D Printing
In order to construct M.A.A.E., a new 3D printer had to be designed. The 3D printer is a
composite system made up of four individual machines: a mother rover with material storage, the “queen bee,” followed by three smaller robotic arm 3D printers, “worker bees”. By using three smaller printers that connect back to the main machine, printing is faster and more efficient. This machine is optimized for in-situ processing for additive manufacturing. The 3D printing process begins with the queen bee, which will be used for excavating the planetary surface and collecting Martian regolith. The collected regolith enters a feed bin to be sent through a ball mill, effectively pulverizing any large pieces into a fine powder for material extraction. In the next chamber molecular breakdown occurs as the regolith is heated and separated. A centralized magnet is used to separate the iron element, while the changes in density push for separation of water, polymers, and any excess material. After the material is extracted into separate containers, a mixture chamber containing a binding agent can be used to mix each material as needed. The final stage is to send the printable material to the worker bees - the three smaller robotic arm 3D printers.
These mini printers are equipped with a number of features: a continuous tank tread
made of a Kevlar, which will help over the rough Martian terrain, a mechanical grip stabilizes each printer as it prints on vertical and uneven surfaces, and the six axis arm provides optimal strength, flexibility, and reach to complete the desired task. The Mother rover has six threaded Kevlar wheels with an airless wheel design with individual motors in each of them. Along with a situational awareness type software used, the rover and worker bees are able to maximize flexibility through the Martian rough terrain. Each axis, or degree of freedom, is responsible for moving the entire robot arm to the programmed point. The six axis movement allows each
robotic arm to move in the x, y, and z planes, as well as position itself using roll, pitch, and yaw movements. The nozzles on each of the worker bees are customized as well, being able to switch from one mixture to the next. Innovation and efficiency in 3D printing used for M.A.A.E will both aid the success of this Mars project and have technology that can be utilized on earth to aid in timely building for disaster relief efforts. Interior Design When designing the habitable area, there is a focus on the user’s psychological and physiological well-being. Applied research in geometries, lighting, circulation, and spatial qualities determined the final form to maximize the level of physical and psychological comfort of the space. In regards to architecture, humans move in two dimensions but experience space in three dimensions. The overall form of the structure utilizes a central core and three bays allowing for delineation in private versus public space. The programmatic division provides areas of respite and allows people to come together or be alone depending on their needs. There are two entrances to the habitat. The first entrance acts as an egress outlet through the top of the habitat via the Orion space shuttle. It will be converted into an airlock, large enough to store their space suits, that will allow the users to pass to move from mars into the habitat and vice verse. This space’s primary function is that of an observation tower. Moving from the viewing observatory into the structure, the space is relatively open with a set of three floating floors that tie into the interior hexagonal structure for stability. These floors provide opportunities for flex spaces. A user can go to one of these floors as an “away space” - an area where they can go to look out a window or read a book. These floors can also be used for recreation or as a workout space. The primary entrance is located at ground level and is printed out of in-situ metals that will tie into the inflatable. This entrance contains an airlock, space suit storage, and a green house for growing plants.
The core area acts as the primary working lab space with opportunities for entertain-
ment and physical activity, which allows for improved happiness and stress reduction, as well as boosting physical health. The lab space occupies the center of the habitat on the ground level. It’s defining feature is a holographic command center where the users can work individually or as a team on various projects surrounding a large table. On three sides of the lab space are various lab stations, two flexible and one larger stationary lab. By being the largest space, it is the most open and allows the most movement and energy. Utilizing taller ceiling heights, including a double-height space in the central core, the habitat’s volume allows for easier depth perception adjustment, minimization of space motion sickness, adjustment to a new gravitational level. The double-height common lab area also serves to provide a sensory
break from the confined limits of astronaut life by making space feel larger and less constricting to reduce feelings of claustrophobia. The wings off the central space are the living spaces: two wings for bedrooms and one wing for a kitchen and bathroom. The bedrooms are highly adaptable spaces. Each wing contains two bedrooms divided by a pair of sliding walls. These walls contain a fold out bed and desk with storage on one side and an entertainment system or couch on the other. The third wing contains the wet spaces, the kitchen and bathroom, as these are the areas that require plumbing. They have been located together in order to have better control over water usage and sanitation. This space is adjacent to the primary lab space, again, to help control water usage and minimize plumbing distance within the space. This wing is also the location for a possible secondary airlock opening. If the habitat were to exist for longer than a year, an air lock tube containing a small indoor greenhouse could be placed to create either a secondary exit or connect into another M.A.A.E.
Within the form, the interior framing structure allows for customizable and flexible furnish-
ings and storage that responds to the user and can adapt to individual needs. The structure allows for movable walls and interchangeable acoustic panels, allowing for privacy and noise control. Color has the ability to impact thoughts and mood so it was important to approach color as a psychologically beneficial aspect. The overall habitat uses white and some light and bright colors to create the illusion of space while promoting feelings of cleanliness and calmness due to neutrality. Strategically placed openings allow natural light to enter the space, helping the inhabitants with time awareness as well as serving to improve energy and mood. Rounded edges of the interior soften the space and benefits physical safety. Soft curves are also easier on the eye, due to a lessening of eye fatigue because it requires less cognitive energy in order to process the forms due to being more organic, relating back to the natural world. Rounded forms also suits humans better for natural movement of the eyes, head, and body. ECLSS
The design provides a unique opportunity for a three separately located but integrated
ECLSS systems that utilize the central dome for protection. Complementary parts were placed together for ease of connection while critical backup systems were placed separately to create a self-supported backup system. Placing critical operations in multiple locations assures that the malfunction or damage of a single unit does not fail the entire system. Each system focuses on one primary function and one secondary function.
The two highest priority systems are air and water supply. The primary func-
tion of System A is the provision of potable water and its secondary responsibility is to function as a nitrogen and oxygen supply. The water system will include 2 of the 4 potable water storage tanks (Tanks 1 and 2). Tank 1 will be connected to the hydrogen separator and hydrogen dump vacuum vent. Both tanks will be fitted with a water pump isolation valve with an attached heater to prevent freezing while releasing excess water. Locating these systems beneath the exterior envelope provides an insulation factor that reduces the strain on the heater and lowers energy needs.
System B provides the contingency potable water tanks (Tanks 3 and 4) so in the occur-
rence of a failure or need of maintenance of System A all potable water needs will utilize Tanks 3 and 4. System B primarily functions as the cabin air revitalization system. It will contain the primary nitrogen and oxygen supply tanks, Power Reactant Storage and Distribution (PRSD), pressurization control system, and electric heaters to prevent freezing. In the occurrence of a System B shutdown, the ECLSS will continue to use the primary water supply of System A and utilize the backup nitrogen and oxygen supply in System A. After any repair or maintenance has been addressed the ECLSS will return to standard operation procedure allowing each system to return to its primary use.
System C primarily functions as waste removal and air filtration. A single waste-water
tank will be located away from the potable tanks in Systems A and B for sanitary purposes. Also included are the water and FREON-21 coolant loops and the ARS Humidity Separator. Locating these units in System C allows condensation harvested from these units to be quickly and efficiently collected in the waste-water tank. The bathroom is located near System C for efficient waste collection and air revitalization. Waste collection gasses will be routed through the fan separator and after passing through the odor and bacteria filters will mix with the cabin air throughout the structure. The fixed wet lab will be connected to System C as well to create a safe area for research projects involving chemicals or Martian materials. Similar air and water treatment systems as the bathroom will be utilized in order to obtain this without cross contaminating other areas with hazardous materials.
The Mars Artificial Atmospheric Envelope is an innovative structure advancing earthly
technology and construction methods, while improving upon micro-housing. There is a focus on 3D printing methods based on ideas found in bio-mimicry that has led to an efficient and forward thinking design.