ORIGO+_Expansion

Origo+_Expansion (lat. origin) is an in-situ printed and robotically assembled Mars settlement predicted to be set for the year 2042. It is a self-sustainable settlement that consists out of 8 habitats made with resilient structures and interior layouts tuned to mission demands and mental health of the crew. It is built for 40 crew members, and their task is to explore Mars and expand the settlement towards it's new form that could house over 150 people in the future.

Harsh conditions on Mars are unlike anything on Earth (high radiation, thin atmosphere, seasonal dust storms…). With these challenges, building on Mars reaches a higher level of importance since buildings are also machines that people depend on to keep them alive and well. In order to plan in advance and develop a sustainable process that minimizes energy, space and resource consumption, a specific timeline has been set. It describes the process through a time period of almost 150 years and it is divided in 6 steps. Origo+_Expansion is a part of the Expanding phase, which is to take place in 2042. in the southwestern Melas Basin, which is part of the vast Melas Chasma, the largest valley on Mars.

However a future Mars society may look like, people will spend most of their time indoors. In order for a crew to stay mentally stable over a long period of time it is of tremendous importance to not feel trapped in a confined space. That’s why one of the main design principles was to create a fluid room program with spaces as open and connected as possbile. The habitat’s functional areas are separated by different levels rather than walls. An open space supports crew communication and contributes to good mental health.

Origo+_Expansion is developed from Ab-Origo project that was done at the Technical University in Vienna in a group of two students: Alma Kugić and Julian Graf, on the summer semester 2020. under the course name Mars Science City and mentorship of Sandra Häuplik-Meusburger. Ab-Origo project depicts the vision and creation of the future city on Mars, and it grasps a bigger part of timeline. Origo+_Expansion is a zoomed in version of Ab-Origo, because it shows only the creation of the first settlement on Mars, but in more detail.