Iconic Earthships take on many shapes and appearances while they embody the same basic concepts of off-grid self sufficiency. Here are some photos demonstrating this variety.
You can read the original article at uk.style.yahoo.com
Earthships are probably the closest thing to arcologies we have. An arcology is a town or city located in a single building or complex of buildings that’s self sufficient when it comes to power, water, waste disposal and food production. This is basically the single family version of an arcology. Even if we never get true arcologies, self sufficiency in the production of electricity, running water, food, and the disposal (and preferable recycling) of waste is something modern cities and towns should aim towards. In fact, at least in the provinces of food and power, many European villages and small towns are relatively self sufficient, so much so that residents often enjoy “zero-kilometre meals”, that is, meals in which the ingredients are harvested and processed under one kilometer from where the meal is eaten.
Come to think of it, earth ships look a lot like some of the proposed habitat \ settlement designs for Mars! I would say a version of those earthships could translate well to Mars. The fact that earthships are partially embedded into the local terrain would offer protection from radiation (important as the red planet doesn’t have a magnetic field like Earth has), while still being able to look out onto the pretty red terrain of Mars, and using Mars’ Earth-like day-night cycle to the advantage of settlers circadian rhythms, allow photosynthesis in the colony’s garden \ farm, and to help with the mental well-being of future Martians. Obviously, the earthship like habitats would have to be made airtight and pressurized, as well as greatly expanded to include multiple dwelling units and workspaces (or have multiple such habitats connected via tunnel-like corridors.