Are you one of those people who answer yes to that ever-so-overused icebreaker question: “Would you go up in space?” Heck, maybe you’ve even contemplated putting your hand up to be one of the people chosen to go live on Mars. Well, what if I told you it’s time to put your money where your mouth is because a New York-based architecture firm proposed their plan to build the first skyscraper suspended over the Earth’s surface. [1]. Yep, you read that right – you may get the chance to live in a high-rise building that isn’t technically on Earth.
Clouds Architecture Office
We all know that New York City is one of the most expensive places to live, but do we ever consider how expensive it is to build structures there? In 2020, construction costs in NYC for one square foot could reach up to $827 [2].
Crazy right? Clouds Architecture Office (Clouds AO) thinks so too. That’s why in 2017, the company released its plan to build the world’s highest skyscraper, the Analemma Tower [1]. And the twist… you may have guessed it – ditch the hefty NYC construction costs and build the Analemma descending from space. “Analemma inverts the traditional diagram of an earth-based foundation, instead depending on a space-based supporting foundation from which the tower is suspended. This system is referred to as the Universal Orbital Support System (UOSS),” says Clouds Architecture Office [1]. So, what’s their plan, how does the Universal Orbital Support System work?
The Plan
First, place a large asteroid into the Earth’s orbit. Next, they plan to attach a high-strength cable and lower towards Earth. Finally, they will start construction in Space. You may ask yourself if all this hassle is worth avoiding the high NYC construction costs. Clouds Architecture Office believes so, and here’s why: It can be constructed anywhere in the world and transported to its final location. Also, they can construct over Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Dubai is an apparent specialist in high-rise buildings and charges only a fifth of what NYC does for construction.
Well, we know you’re still wondering how the heck are they planning to house tenants in a floating building. Here’s what Clouds Architecture Office had to say about the living conditions in this suspending skyscraper: The building will be divided. The lower area will be commercial, and at around two-thirds of the way up, it will be residential.
The suspension height was carefully considered.
In a statement, the company admitted that part of their preliminary research was figuring out the height of the building suspended above the Earth’s surface. “While researching atmospheric conditions for this project, we realized that there is probably a tangible height limit beyond which people would not tolerate living due to the extreme conditions. For example, while there may be a benefit to having 45 extra minutes of daylight at an elevation of 32,000 meters, the near-vacuum and -40C temperature would prevent people from going outside without a protective suit,” said Clouds AO [3].
Residents get 40 extra minutes of daylight
At the skyscraper’s higher levels, the amount of daylight residents will experience increases by 40 minutes due to the Earth’s curvature. The windows are also designed to withstand the pressure and temperature differences at different heights [1].
Analemma will use space-based solar panels
Because the top of the structure will be above the atmosphere, the panels will have consistent exposure to direct sunlight, making solar panels the obvious and most effective form of power. What do you think? Would you want to live in the sky?