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A Real Martian House Lands on Earth, Shows a Glimpse Into a Possible Martian Future

We can’t predict the future, but we never let that stop us before. An art and science collective from Bristol, UK, is aiming to do just that with their Martian House, a house prototype that could one day be used to live on the Red Planet.
Martian House prototype, now on display in Bristol 10 photos
Photo: Luke O’Donovan / Building a Martian House
Martian House prototype, now on display in BristolMartian House prototype, now on display in BristolMartian House prototype, now on display in BristolMartian House prototype, now on display in BristolMartian House prototype, now on display in BristolMartian House prototype, now on display in BristolMartian House prototype, now on display in BristolMartian House prototype, now on display in BristolElla Good and Nicki Kent in astronaut suits at the Mars Desert Research Station, Utah
It will be decades before Elon Musk’s SpaceX lands on Mars and decades more before we’re even close to the dream of colonizing what is essentially a very inhospitable planet. But there is potential for human life on Mars, and hopefully it can accessed before our own planet reaches the end of life. What a house on Mars could look like might seem like losing focus or, at best, not a priority, but it’s of vital importance.

A house on Mars has to provide shelter from the harsh conditions, including average temperatures of -63 degree Centigrade and radiation, and it also has to provide nourishment for the people inside. Dream all we want, but no dream of farming on Mars is anchored in reality as of this moment, so this means that the house will have to serve for this purpose, as well.

Artists Ella Good and Nicki Kent started thinking about the Martian House in 2015, but it would be another couple of years until they got in touch with the people who made it happen – mostly free of charge, which is a very notable detail. The prototype is now in a stage advanced enough for it to go on public display, but still a work in progress in the sense that the interior is not complete – but will be in the following months, with input from researchers, artists and the general public.

Martian House prototype, now on display in Bristol
Photo: Building a Martian House
Since Martian House is both an art installment and a research platform, it will be used to further explore and / or illustrate possibilities for the actual future Martian house. At the same time, it should encourage conversations on how “we can live more sustainably on Earth and reassess our relationship with consumerism.” As the two artists put it, it’s a platform meant to encourage conversation and stimulate imagination, not provide concrete answers.

The Martian House is a two-story building by Hugh Broughton, whose firm specializes in habitats and research stations for remote locations (like Antarctica). Other collaborators include design studio Pearce+, space science and engineering experts Professor Lucy Berthoud, Dr. Robert Myhill and Professor James Norman from the University of Bristol, construction specialists, and members of the public.

“This is the first Martian House to receive a building consent and it is so exciting to see it built in Bristol. The design draws upon principles developed for extreme environments on earth overlayed with solutions to the logistic and environmental challenges of building on Mars,” Broughton says. “The project provides an alternative approach to space design which represents the interests of everyone, not just governments and the super-rich.”

Though it looks like something out of a ‘70s movie set in the future, due to its gold-coated foil inflatable exterior, the similarity is only accidental. The Martian House is inflatable, but only so it can be moved from location to location, because on Mars, it would be filled with Martian regolith (soil). The lower level is underground, using the lava tubes that exist beneath the planet’s surface as structure.

Martian House prototype, now on display in Bristol
Photo: Luke O’Donovan / Building a Martian House
The two-story interior offers 53 square meters (570.5 square feet) of living space, divided in areas with multiple functionality. These include two bedroom “pods,” a control room, and a bathroom with shower and a low-water-consumption “Martian loo” designed by Duravit, the prize winners in the NASA Lunar Loo competition. There’s also a hydroponic room where researchers could grow food, but also come to relax and meditate.

Power comes via solar panels, and everything inside, from the furniture to the items of clothing or for everyday use, would have to be multi-purpose, zero waste, and with minimal carbon footprint. These are just the details that still need clearing, so they can be made real, and it will happen in the following months, as the two artists hold various workshops and meetings inside the Martian House.

The Martian House is now on display in the M Shed Square in Bristol, and is open to the public between August 31 and October 16. Drop by if you’re in the area, especially if you think you have something noteworthy to add to the conversation on a possible future house on Mars.

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About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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