History of Architecture Course Submission

History of Architecture assignment
Project: NÜWA CITY
by ABIBOO Studio and SONet
Location: Tempe Mensa, Mars
Student: Nikolai Abramov
Class: Architectural Engineering, Politecnico di Milano
Submission date: December 12, 2021

2
Brief Description of the Project
The Nüwa concept was selected as one of the top 10 finalists in the Mars
Society - Mars City State competition 2020.1 This Martian City project by the
Sustainable Off-world Network and ABIBOO Studio is not only a proposal for an
urban development on Mars; it is an effort to imagine a long-term plan for a
renewed human society. It is a society that uses data to make decisions and applies
science to understand, tame, and cherish the world. This is a society whose
infrastructure emerges from scarce resources provided by a new planet and that is
shaped by human ingenuity and a common goal for a more sustainable future.2
Nüwa is SONet’s first attempt to formulate a development for a city that can
sustain itself and its own growth beyond Earth. Since a large city and its population
(100 thousands to 1 million) is a complex system with numerous cross dependencies,
this goes beyond the classic space engineering exercise of planting a planetary
settlement and supplying it. Its economic model consists of postulating that the
growth rate is always proportional to the number of inhabitants, and then estimating
how many resources are needed to add an additional citizen to the infrastructure.
This defines the duties of the current citizens, which consists of maintaining it,
sustaining the immigration rate, and expanding its infrastructure. Making a realistic
estimate of the resources is a daunting problem because of recurrent dependencies
that need to be solved in iterations. For example, energy is needed to fabricate new
solar panels, which also requires mineral resources, machines to collect those
resources that need metals and manufacturing infrastructure to produce them, which
in turn consume energy.3
1
“Finalists Chosen in Mars City State Design Competition”, The Mars Society, accessed December 2,
2021. https://www.marssociety.org/news/2020/09/28/
finalists-chosen-in-mars-city-state-design-competition/
2
Guillem Anglada-Escudé et al., “The Nüwa Concept. A development model for a self-sustainable
city on Mars” The 23rd Annual nal Mars Society Convention (October 2020),
https://www.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.29517.56803
3
“Nuwa - Mars City Design Contest 2020”, SONet, accessed December 2, 2021.
https://sonet-hub.com/mars-city-state-design-contest/
3
This project is a truly sustainable one that takes into account all possible
aspects from where to get required materials to how the society will work in a place
millions kilometers away from home. Looking at how problems are solved on
another planet we can see how we can approach them on Earth.
Location and Nearby Resources
The design consists of five cities, with 200,000 inhabitants each. Different
locations strategically selected ensure in-situ resource utilization. On Mars, there is a
trade-off between accessible water and access to Solar energy. The closer to the pole,
the more accessible the underground water (permafrost) is, but the lower the energy
influx. There are also regions that are rich in water bearing clays at mid-to-equatorial
latitudes. In addition to this, the Nüwa approach requires the presence of cliffs with
strong consolidated rock for the human dwelled spaces.4
This project proposed five different locations.5 Considering five cities allows
access to resources located in different places and offers redundancy for the
inhabitants on Mars, should a problem occur in one location. The first proposed
settlement is Nüwa, the capital, located in a region called Tempe Mensa, which
stands in the middle of a riverbed at the shore of the ancient Martian ocean. In this
location, the primary source of water would (initially) be clays, but frozen aquifers
might be available at a few tens of meters below ground. The presence of past water
circulation through the area also provides good prospects of mineral deposits and
concentration of metal ores. A second urban center should also be developed within
the first general area, to both optimize key resource extraction, and improve
resilience against urban center wide incidents. A third location for a city could be in
4
Gisela Detrell et al., “Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars - development concept, urban
design and life support” Conference: 50th International Conference on Environmental Systems (July
2021),
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353402718_Nuwa_a_self-sustainable_city_state_on_Mars_-
_development_concept_urban_design_and_life_support
5
ABIBOO Studio. Proposed Human Settlement on Mars. Diagram. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
https://www.stirworld.com/images/see/2100_ABIBOO_Nuwa_5.jpg?6
4
the Vallis Marineris area, which also has abundant cliffs, evidence of past water
circulation and satellite confirmed presence of iron rich deposits (water might be too
deeply buried for efficient extraction in a first settlement). To enable large-scale
development of the city, a settlement close to the pole is also desirable to mass
extract the necessary amounts of water from surface ice. This polar city would
require further technology development since it is likely to require a well-developed
nuclear power generation system. The fifth city could be located in any other region
with key strategic resources and/or peculiar landscape possibilities (e.g. rim of
Olympus Mons).6
Urban Planning
The solution, a city excavated in the cliffs, is a flexible and scalable model
that could be easily applicable in many other Martian surface areas.7 The city of
Nüwa is on the slope of one of the Martian cliffs with abundant water access, located
at Tempe Mensa. A steep terrain offers the opportunity to create a vertical city
inserted into the rock. The construction inside the cliffs protects inhabitants from
radiation and micrometeorites, and provides indirect sunlight. It also solves the
pressure and temperature differences between the inside and the outside.
The highest point of the cliff is the Mesa. This vast plain contains the
infrastructure dedicated to manufacturing, food production, and energy generation.8
At the foot of the cliff, large pavilions have been located for social interaction in the
Valley. These pavilions have been designed with translucent skin to offer views of
the landscapes of Mars. These domes are protected from external radiation by large
overflying canopies. The material from the cliff's excavation is dumped (i.e. directly
reused) on top of such roofs as radiation shield. This strategy avoids waste
management at a large-scale. In the valley, there are also specific structures to house
6
Detrell, “Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars - development concept, urban design and life
support”.
7
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, cliff and valley. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
8
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, Cliff view. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
5
hospitals, schools and universities, sports and cultural activities, shopping areas, and
train stations that communicate with the space shuttle. An artificial mountain created
with additional material extracted from the excavations acts as a visual frame for the
city and to decrease the fluctuations of temperature. It includes auxiliary energy
systems, storage, and parking spaces for rovers and intra-city trucks.
Macro-Buildings
The "Macro-buildings", with a total volume of 125,000,000 m3 per city, are

excavations inside the rock of the cliff.9 These constructions, implemented after
tunneling, are modular and include residential and work activities, linked together by
a three-dimensional network of tunnels. Each Macro-building accommodates 4,440
people and is self sufficient for the day-to-day activities on Mars. The modules that
create these buildings include tunnels of 10 meters in diameter and 60 meters long,
with two floors.10 There are three different residential and three work modules,
providing a highly flexible and scalable opportunity by recombining the modules as
needed.11 By giving this standardization, the design ensures scalability and reduces
complexity, costs, and construction schedules. All modules include green areas and
urban gardens, spaces dedicated to art, and condensation areas, called
"Snow-domes", that help dissipate heat and clean the air. The urban gardens are
small community parks with animals and bodies of water designed to provide
physical and psychological well-being. To create an emotional linkage with Earth,
the design team has included vast, artificially created natural spaces in Nüwa. They
are named "Green-domes", and there are two types: those that allow human presence
and act as parks, and those that include experimental vegetation in an environment
with a purely Martian atmosphere. As each macro-building is self-sufficient, the
population in Nüwa can grow as needed. The first colony can be as little as 4,440
9
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, Macro buildings inside the cliff. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
10
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, urban interior. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
11
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, macro building. Diagram. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
6
people and it can grow while the rest of the city is built. The city is expected to be
completed after 50 years, when its population will reach 250,000.12
Transportation
The Macro-Buildings are linked with High-Speed Elevator Systems, similar

to those of skyscrapers on Earth. This infrastructure connects the top of the Cliff
(Mesa) with the bottom of the Cliff (Valley), and stops in the middle at Sky-Lobbies.
These intermediary lobbies provide access to the adjacent Macro-Buildings and their
vertical communication systems. The transportation infrastructure on both sides of
each Macro-Building creates a city vertical-grid of 800-meters that can be replicated
as needed to accommodate phases for the Martian settlement. The transportation
infrastructure acts as the bones of the new “urban body,” giving structure and
flexibility for growth.13
At the base and top of the Wall, a system of light trains and buses is used to
move in the longitudinal direction of the cliff. The underground spaces at the base of
the Wall, adjacent to the Tunnel-Parks and the Arcades, include the train stations that
connect with the Space Shuttle Hub that, for the case of Nüwa, is located inside the
big crater in contact to the west side of the Mesa. All transportation inside the city
happens within pressurized spaces and consists of electrically powered vehicles.
Energy
Energy is essential to keep the city alive and to enable the city’s growth. As
any other resource, it needs to be collected, transformed, and stored. Given enough
power, one can eventually reproduce any of the functions that we do on Earth.
However, scaling the energy production facilities creates a recurrence issue in the
design. If we need more power, more materials need to be extracted and
manufactured to provide the power, which leads to even higher power needs. To
12
support”.
13
Anglada-Escudé et al., “The Nüwa Concept. A development model for a self-sustainable city on
Mars”.
7
address this aspect, the strategy implemented consisted of using the requirements of
the Life Support System (37kW per citizen) plus an allowance of 5kW per citizen
(personal and non-production related services), and then adding power in 10 kW
increments until enough energy was produced per year to achieve the citizen
production goal of 0.125 CU/yr. Fortunately, the process converged for the three
energy systems considered to a value of around 110 kW per capita. This number is
quite high (Earth power per capita is between 5 and 10 kW per capita in developed
countries), but it also is unavoidable given the requirements of the life support
system, and the required development rate.
Hybrid energy system of Photovoltaics (PV), Concentrated Solar Power

(CSP), and Nuclear is chosen. For resilience and efficiency considerations, the three
technologies should be implemented, so there is always spare power to, at least, run
the life support system. Both the CSP and Nuclear produce enough energy by
themselves to run the LSS, so if one fails, development stops, but people stay safe
and alive. Any excess of energy should be stored chemically in H2 and O2 , solid C,
and liquid fuels.14
City Communal Areas
Humans are social beings, so providing spaces for social gatherings is

essential for the wellbeing of the citizens. Additionally, in terms of the quality of the
space, it is vital in a harsh environment, like the one on Mars, to provide large green
areas where humans, plants, and animals interact similarly to how we do in city parks
on Earth.15 It is also critical to offer long-distance views of the outside landscapes,
especially when many daily activities will happen underground.
To achieve this objective, Nüwa includes Pavilions, which are large domes in
the Valley of the Cliff. The proposed solution ensures protection from radiation by
having large, low-cost canopies at a distance over these Pavilions. The material
14
Mars”.
15
ABIBOO Studio. Green areas of the city. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
8
obtained from excavating the tunnels is reused on top of these canopies. The domes’
main structure absorbs the pressure from the inside of these Pavilions. Thanks to the
mentioned canopies, the Pavilions’ building skin can be transparent or translucent in
an economical manner. Some of these Pavilions include nature and are called
Green-Pavilions. In contrast, other types of these dome-like structures are the
Urban-Pavilions, which provide plazas for public activities and act as the Agoras of
Nüwa.
These Pavilions connect with other spaces called Galleries, which are vast
underground spaces, such as sports arenas, music halls, and light train stations to
communicate with the Space Shuttle Hub. The large volume of air required inside of
these communal areas is solved with 30-meter diameter underground tunnels. The
Galleries and Pavilions connect underground to the High-Speed Elevator Systems
through additional buildings that are part of these 30-meter-diameter tunneling
systems, which comprises of Arcades, that include shopping and entertainment areas,
and Tunnel-Gardens, which are underground gardens at the base of the High-Speed
Elevator Systems.
On the surface of the Valley, and connected to the underground Galleries, the
city included support buildings, such as Infrastructure-Pavilion, and Advanced
Components. Finally, an artificial mountain on the Valley created with the material
extracted from the excavation, which includes Auxiliary Energy Systems, such as
fuel cells, Low-Pressure Tanks, including ice and solid CO2 , and High-Pressure
Tanks for CH4 and Liquid O2 (LOX), among others. The artificial mountain also
includes Storage of Raw Material, Storage of Processed Material, and Parking Lots,
for Rovers and Trucks. This mountain reduces the impact of temperature variation
and provides a visual framework for the arrival by land to the city.16
16
Mars”.
9
Life support system
The LSS concept for Nüwa includes several living organisms to ensure a full
closure of all LSS-loops, including atmosphere, food, water and waste management.
17
Crops and microalgae are in charge of producing 50% and 20% of the food
respectively, while processing CO2 into O2 and taking part in the water processing
system. Both crops and microalgae grow in the agricultural modules,18 the
atmosphere of which is independent from the living compartments. That allows the
use of a CO2-rich atmosphere (3,000 ppm). Together with the use of hydroponic
systems and adaptive LED-lighting, this ensures a highly efficient cultivation. The
LED can ensure that the plants obtain the required lighting for efficient growth at all
phases, independently from solar irradiation, which on Mars is considerably lower
than on Earth. The system will require 37 kW per person. With these conditions, a
surface of about 100 m2 per person for crop production, and 250 L microalgae
reactors are required according to current experiments.
In the living compartments CO2 is collected, together with water, through

cold precipitation. This is achieved by expanding the pressurized air into large, but
closed volumes exposed to the surface of the planet, the "Snow-domes". The
expanding gas goes through a turbine producing mechanical energy, losing heat, and
its temperature further drops (Joule-Thomson effect). As a result, CO2 and air
humidity freeze into snow that falls to the bottom. Other gases (O2, N2, and Ar) do
not become liquid, and can be re-injected into the system with a compressor (using
energy from the turbine) to the pressurized environment. The CO2 can then be
transported to the agricultural modules, while the water goes to the water
management system.
17
ABIBOO Studio. Life support system concept. Render. April 15, 2021. Imgur.
https://imgur.com/a/6Km4t4V
18
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa’s agricultural modules. Render. April 15, 2021. Imgur.
https://imgur.com/a/fn8RiMg
10
Besides crops and microalgae, other living organisms will complement the
diet. Several potential animal and insect farming species have been considered to
provide a first estimate of surface and resources required. Insects, even if they are not
widely introduced in western diets, are highly efficient. Typical values for insects are
that 80% of insect mass is edible, while for fish and other farm animals, such as
chickens, cows or pigs, the amount of edible mass is reduced to an average of 55%.
Insects consume less than 3,000 liters of water for each kilogram of meat produced,
while farm animals will consume between 5,000 and 16,000 liters. Animals are
expensive to grow and maintain compared to crops or algae, but they provide a
positive psychological effect and can serve as a buffer in the system. Due to the small
amount of daily consumption considered (4%), the required surface for land farming
is estimated to be less than 0,5 m2 and the volume for fish production less than 600
L.
Cellular meat production should provide about 15% of the daily food
consumption. Although this method of meat production is still not implemented in
our daily life, several companies are currently working on that and it is reasonable to
think that in the project timeframe the technology would be fully developed. It is
estimated that, to produce 240 g/day, 3.31 m2 system will be required. Other living
organisms, such as mushrooms should also be considered to ensure a balanced diet.
Finally, several bacteria will be in charge of processing both the solid and
liquid waste. The system should be composed of several types of bacteria, to be able
to break the waste products into the elements required for the LSS, e.g. nutrients for
the algae and crop.19
19
support”.
11
Critical Bibliography
Chapters of book on the project
The Mars Society. "Mars City States: New Societies for a New World." ed. F.
Crossman, 237-270. Lakewood: Polaris Books, 2021.
Articles on the project
Guillem Anglada-Escudé et al., “The Nüwa Concept. A development model for a

self-sustainable city on Mars,” The 23rd Annual International Mars Society
Convention (October 2020), https://www.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.29517.56803
Gisela Detrell et al., “Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars - development

concept, urban design and life support,” Conference: 50th International Conference
on Environmental Systems (July 2021),
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353402718_Nuwa_a_self-sustainable_city_
state_on_Mars_-_development_concept_urban_design_and_life_support
Online articles on the project
Devanshi, Shah. “Mars' first planned city Nüwa is resilient and self-sustaining”, Stir
World, April 15, 2021,
https://www.stirworld.com/see-features-mars-first-planned-city-nuwa-is-resilient-and
-self-sustaining
Movies on the project
Scenit, “Nüwa, a city on Mars | Presentation - The Sustainable Offworld Network”

uploaded October 2020 on YouTube, video, 25:55,
https://youtu.be/ySERcYMWza0
12
Other
“Finalists Chosen in Mars City State Design Competition”, The Mars Society,
accessed December 2, 2021. https://www.marssociety.org/news/2020/09/28/
finalists-chosen-in-mars-city-state-design-competition/
“Nuwa - Mars City Design Contest 2020”, SONet, accessed December 2, 2021.
https://sonet-hub.com/mars-city-state-design-contest/
“Mars City State Contest”, The Mars Society, accessed December 2, 2021.
https://citystate.marssociety.org/
Images of the project
ABIBOO Studio. Proposed Human Settlement on Mars. Diagram. April 15, 2021.
Stir World. https://www.stirworld.com/images/see/2100_ABIBOO_Nuwa_5.jpg?6
13
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, cliff and valley. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, Cliff view. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
14
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, Macro buildings inside the cliff. Render. April 15,
2021. Stir World.
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, urban interior. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
15
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa City, macro building. Diagram. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
ABIBOO Studio. Nüwa’s agricultural modules. Render. April 15, 2021. Imgur.
https://imgur.com/a/fn8RiMg
16
ABIBOO Studio. Green areas of the city. Render. April 15, 2021. Stir World.
ABIBOO Studio. Life support system concept. Render. April 15, 2021. Imgur.
https://imgur.com/a/6Km4t4V
17
Selected Documents
Attached in PDF format in the assignment folder.
Gisela Detrell et al., “Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars - development

concept, urban design and life support” Conference: 50th International Conference
on Environmental Systems (July 2021),
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353402718_Nuwa_a_self-sustainable_city_
state_on_Mars_-_development_concept_urban_design_and_life_support
Guillem Anglada-Escudé et al., “The Nüwa Concept. A development model for a

self-sustainable city on Mars” The 23rd Annual nal Mars Society Convention
(October 2020), https://www.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.29517.56803.
See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353402718
Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars - development concept, urban

design and life support
Conference Paper · July 2021
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50th International Conference on Environmental Systems ICES-2021-225
12-15 July 2021
Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars –

development concept, urban design and life support
Gisela Detrell 1
University of Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany
Alfredo Muñoz 2
ABIBOO Studio, New York, USA
Miquel Banchs-Piqué 3
University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK
Guillem Anglada 4,5

Institut de Ciències de l'Espai/CSIC, Barcelona, Spain
Institut d'Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC), Barcelona, Spain
Philipp Hartlieb 6
Montanuniversitaet Leoben, Leoben, Austria
Miquel Sureda 7
UPC-BarcelonaTECH, Barcelona, Spain
Mars is one of the current targets for human space exploration. The first settlement will most likely
include a small group of explorers, but with time, it is reasonable to assume that a city on Mars might
grow and become a reality. Nüwa is a project of the Sustainable Off-world Network (SONet), a network
of interdisciplinary and international professionals, dedicated to the development of sustainable
human settlements beyond Earth. This project focuses on engineering and architecture, but also on
sustainable growth planning of a society on the red planet. The design consists of five cities, with
200,000 inhabitants each. Different locations strategically selected ensure in-situ resource utilization.
The city concept is based on a tunneling system on cliffs. The design of a big city in the harsh Mars
environment poses several challenges and is a complex and broad task. Further research in all fields is
required. This paper focuses on three aspects of the design: development concept, urban planning and
Life Support. The city needs to provide a safe environment for the inhabitants, but also provide all
required services and a practical and enjoyable place to live. This imposes challenges to the resilience
of the system and the availability of resources as well as construction methods suitable for installing
the desired infrastructure. The Life Support System consists mainly on biological elements, and its
integration within the city is crucial, as it provides oxygen, water and food. Finally, the size of the city
requires a sustainable growth plan, regarding materials and energy. As a result of this study, a first
order of magnitude of the local resources to be incorporated per inhabitant is estimated, setting the
baseline values for key quantities to be considered in future studies.
1
Head of Life Support Research Group, Institute of Space Systems, Pfaffenwaldring 29 – 70569 Stuttgart,
detrell@irs.uni-stuttgart.de
2
Founder & CEO, ABIBOO Studio. 221 River Street, #9, Hoboken, NJ, 07030, USA. amunoz@abiboo.com
3
School of Civil Engineering and Surveying, University of Portsmouth, Portland Building, Portland Street,
Portsmouth (UK), PO1 3AH, miquel.banchs-pique@port.ac.uk.
4
Ramón y Cajal Research fellow, Institut de Ciències de l'Espai/CSIC, Carrer Can Magrans s/n, Cerdanyola, 08193
5
Member of Institut d'Estudis Espacials de Catalunya, Gran Capità, 2-4, Edifici Nexus, Desp. 201, 08034 Barcelona
6
Senior Scientist, Chair of Mining Engineering and Mineral Economics, Montanuniversitaet Leoben, Franz-Josef-
Strasse 18, 8700 Leoben, Austria, philipp.hartlieb@unileoben.ac.at
7
Coordinator of the Master's degree in Aerospace Engineering, UPC-BarcelonaTECH, Carrer de Colom 11, 08222
Terrassa, Barcelona, Spain, miquel.sureda@upc.edu
Copyright © 2021 SONet

Nomenclature
AI = Artificial Intelligence LSS = Life Support System
CU = City Unit MEP = Mechanical, Plumbing & Electrical
ISS = International Space Station SONet = Sustainable Off-world Network
I. Introduction
H umanity has proven its ability to explore the Solar System and live permanently in Low Earth Orbit. A number
of probes have been exploring the Solar System for decades, some of which even reached interstellar space 1. The
International Space Station (ISS) has demonstrated that permanently maintaining and occupying an orbital space
station for more than 20 years is also viable 2. These endeavors are, however, not self-sustainable as they still partially
rely on supplies from Earth. Therefore, the next challenge is to ensure humans are able to live in another world in a
sustainable and independent manner. Given current technologies, the most viable options for human settlements are
the Moon, some asteroids and Mars 3. From these, Mars seems the best fit to attempt a self-sustainable settlement, as
it has some conditions which are similar to those on Earth (e.g., very similar day length), it is relatively close, and it
contains the basic elements needed to support a human settlement 4.
Nüwa is a concept design for a self-sustainable settlement on Mars prepared by the Sustainable Off-world Network
(SONet) for the Mars Society competition 2020 5. SONet is an interdisciplinary network of professionals in the public
and private sector, enthusiastic about space, comprising aerospace engineers, biologists, architects, mining engineers,
geologists and more. SONet aspires to link these disciplines to successfully develop concepts for sustainable human
presence in space, but also looking beyond space applications. If starting a society in space is possible, Earth problems
can be solved as well 6.
The Mars Society announced the competition in February 2020. It asked for designs of a 1Million inhabitants city-
state on Mars (with the possibility of using more than one location). The city (or cities) had to be “self-supporting to
the maximum extent possible”, “be able to both produce essential bulk materials (...) and fabricate them into useful
structures”. Participating teams were asked “to design an economy, cost it out and show that after a certain initial
investment in time, money and effort, that it can become successful”5. The competition attracted 175 teams from all
over the world. The SONet project, Nüwa, ranked top 10 and was invited for a presentation at the finals in October
2020 7,8.
The result of the Nüwa project is an integrated design of a development plan, including the production of raw
materials and essential products, and the manufacturing of almost all goods on Mars, as well as a full political and
societal concept detailing the economic model, education, recreational capacities, and even solutions for birth and
death of the citizens of Nüwa. This paper briefly describes the Nüwa concept (Chapter II), and focuses on three main
aspects: its basic development model (Chapter III), the urban planning approach (Chapter IV), and the Life Support
System (Chapter V). More information regarding the Nüwa design, including some systems not mentioned in this
paper can be found in the project report 9.
II. The Nüwa concept

Nüwa, in Chinese mythology, is the mother goddess held responsible for the creation and protection of humanity.
The project Nüwa aims to develop a settlement on Mars, to create and protect the first society in the red planet. Mars
is a harsh environment, and not yet fully explored. This chapter aims to highlight some of the main characteristics of
the Nüwa concept before going into detail on the development concept, urban planning and Life Support Systems
(LSS) in the following chapters.
A. Constrains and assumptions

Mars’ gravity is not too dissimilar to that on Earth, approximately 1/3 of it, and its solar day is only about 2.7%
longer than Earth's4. Unlike other Solar System planets, Mars can provide the raw materials required to support a
human settlement. Besides the carbon-rich atmosphere, Mars is also rich in water, mostly as permafrost and in clays,
vital to sustain life and source of hydrogen. Oxygen and silicon are also abundant on Mars's surface 10,11, and Curiosity
Rover has found biologically useful Nitrogen 12. Phosphorus, Chlorine and Sulfur are within other critical elements
found in Mars. In addition, various of these elements are likely to be concentrated in high-grade ores by the effect of
ancient volcanic and hydrologic processes10.
The design of a Mars settlement will be highly influenced by Mars environmental conditions. Mars atmosphere is
mainly composed by Carbon Dioxide (CO2), containing almost no Oxygen (O2) and its pressure on the surface is less
than 1% that of Earth. The combination of a thin atmosphere and a lack of magnetosphere exposes the surface of Mars
to much higher levels of radiation and cosmic rays than that of Earth. Mars receives less irradiation from the Sun than
2
International Conference on Environmental Systems

the Earth, 590 W/m2 and 1000 W/m2 respectively 13. Additionally, its orbital eccentricity results in broad differences
between the irradiation received at the aphelion (furthest distance from the Sun) and the perihelion (closest distance
to the Sun), which translates in a temperature range of 170-240 K at mid latitudes. These low temperatures make it
impossible to find water in liquid form. In addition, there is a non-negligible flux of micrometeorites that reach its
surface and sand storms can last for weeks 14,15,16.
All these factors and the constraints imposed by the Mars Society competition set the frame for the design. In
addition, some assumptions and design principles needed to be adopted. The main are (1) this is a development plan
using local resources, so except for the initial deployment phase, the settlement’s growth should be self-sustainable
(using local resources and manufacture only —which protects the design from problems on Earth), (2) the design
should be resilient and it should use current science and existing (or almost existing) technologies, (3) the timeframe
for the growth of the settlement is arbitrarily set to 50 years which is a reasonable time-scale for the growth of cities
also on Earth, and (4) the city must be an attractive place to live.
For the development model to work, all the material cycles and costs must be designed following standards of
circular economy and avoiding any energy losses. That is, once a material is integrated into the system, it shall not
leave it, and materials with low embodied energy are the preferable choice when possible. With these principles, a
safe and good living standard for the population must be maintained and mechanisms for individual and collective
improvement granted.
B. Interdisciplinary design
The aim of this project goes beyond envisioning the infrastructure required for a Mars city, from an architectural
and engineering point of view. As previously mentioned, self-sustainability and creating an attractive place to live are
key elements on the design. Therefore, the entire process includes different disciplines, for example geology
(regarding Mars available resources), material science and engineering (obtaining and processing these resources),
orbital mechanics (transportation between Earth and Mars), biology (living organisms in the system). Besides those
technical disciplines, socio-economical aspects are also very relevant. Education, political and economic organization
have also been considered, among other aspects in the design of Nüwa. Further information on energy supply,
communication, ground transport, social welfare infrastructure, culture and education, manufacture, chemical
transformation, among others, can be found in the Nüwa report9.
Figure 1. View of Nüwa. This side view shows the cliff wall with several living compartments (“light” points in the
wall) and the infrastructure in the valley. Credits: ABIBOO Studio / SONet.
C. Construction inside the cliffs of Mars

One of the most characteristic features of this project is the construction of the city excavated in the cliffs, Figure 1.
This architectural solution, discussed in more detail in Chapter IV, provides structures that protect inhabitants from
the radiation on Mars, ensure indirect access to sunlight, protect from potential impact from micrometeorites, and
solve the atmospheric pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the buildings.

From the urban point of view, building inside the cliff offers large advantages versus building underground in
other locations, such as lava-tubes or craters. Thanks to the geological composition of a cliff, it is possible to create a
denser three-dimensional urban net, reducing substantially the space and the resources required for transporting
humans, life-support systems, and goods inside the city. A dense urban net is very important for a large settlement as
it saves space and resources in the infrastructure required to connect the different areas in the city.
Additionally, excavating a city in Martian cliff walls is a safe solution since the high geological density guarantees
good structural behavior and, in addition, Mars does not show relevant seismic activity 17.
D. Location – Multiple cities concept

In Mars, there is a trade-off between accessible water and access to Solar energy. The closer to the pole, the more
accessible the underground water (permafrost) is, but the lower the energy influx. There are also regions that are rich
in water bearing clays at mid-to-equatorial latitudes. In addition to this, the Nüwa approach requires the presence of
cliffs with strong consolidated rock for the human dwelled spaces (the requirement on the slopes can be reduced, but
not the strength of the ground to avoid large overheads in structural materials). With the current available data from
Mars, it is not possible to select a precise optimal location. A detailed analysis of published data, has allowed the
selection of potential targets, which should be analyzed in more detail in the future.
This project proposed five different locations. Considering five cities allows access to resources located in different
places and offers redundancy for the inhabitants on Mars, should a problem occur in one location. The first proposed
settlement is Nüwa, the capital, located in a region called Tempe Mensa, which stands in the middle of a riverbed at
the shore of the ancient Martian ocean. In this location, the primary source of water would (initially) be clays, but
frozen aquifers might be available at a few tens of meters below ground. The presence of past water circulation through
the area also provides good prospects of mineral deposits and concentration of metal ores. A second urban center
should also be developed within the first general area, to both optimize key resource extraction, and improve resilience
against urban center wide incidents. A third location for a city could be in the Vallis Marineris area, which also has
abundant cliffs, evidence of past water circulation and satellite confirmed presence of iron rich deposits (water might
be too deeply buried for efficient extraction in a first settlement). To enable large-scale development of the city, a
settlement close to the pole is also desirable to mass extract the necessary amounts of water from surface ice. This
polar city would require further technology development since it is likely to require well-developed nuclear power
generation system. The fifth city could be located in any other region with key strategic resources and/or peculiar
landscape possibilities (e.g. rim of Olympus Mons).
III. Development concept – sustainable growth

Placing a city on Mars requires considering how it should be developed over time. Moreover, given the harshness
and difficulties of the environment, the development itself shall be a key element of its nascent economy. For example,
it is rather inefficient and unrealistic to assume that a large number of machines can be deployed at a certain point and
that those machines would linearly build the city. As it happens on Earth, the larger the community (or economy), the
more productive it becomes. Reinvesting surpluses in development infrastructure will allow a faster growth.
A. Growth model
For this project’s model, a production and, therefore, a growth rate, proportional to the number of inhabitants is
assumed, once a certain level of infrastructure complexity is achieved, and following the principle of self-
development 18. The requirement on the production rate can be set by estimating how many resources need to be
collected, processed and how much infrastructure needs to be deployed to include one citizen to the city, which we
call a City Unit (CU). The definition of the development process first requires generating an inventory of components
in each CU (e.g. square meters per citizen, number of hospital beds, services). This required-CU needs to be mapped
into Martian resources first, and then into operational requirements, such as energy and resource extraction rates. On
top of this, maintenance cost (at least in terms of energy) to keep the city alive, even if there is no growth, need to be
added. This process requires the development of all systems and subsystems in the city, including among other the
LSS and the urban development.
Following this approach, the development is defined by Equation 1, where N is the number of citizens (or CUs),
T is a characteristic time-scale, and 𝑁𝑁𝑖𝑖 is the number of CUs imported from Earth. This equation can be trivially
integrated and produces an exponential growth, Equation 2. 𝑁𝑁0 (the initial population) and the time-scale T are
parameters to be fixed by the boundary conditions. For all practical purposes, it is sufficient to assume that the import
rate 𝑁𝑁𝑖𝑖 is smaller than 𝑁𝑁0 by about one order of magnitude, and represents the imported goods necessary to repair or
assemble key systems in the first years of development.

𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 1 1 𝑡𝑡�
= 𝑁𝑁 + 𝑁𝑁𝑖𝑖 (1) 𝑁𝑁(𝑡𝑡) = (𝑁𝑁0 + 𝑁𝑁𝑖𝑖 ) 𝑒𝑒 𝑇𝑇 − 𝑁𝑁𝑖𝑖 (2)
𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 𝑇𝑇 𝑇𝑇
Figure 2 shows the resulting city growth, following this exponential law. Using the constrains assumed in the
previous section as boundary conditions, an initial population 𝑁𝑁0 = 1,000, and a final population
𝑁𝑁(𝑡𝑡 = 50 𝑦𝑦𝑦𝑦) = 106 , the typical time needed to grow the population by a factor e can be found. By direct substitution
of this values in Equation 2, we find T ~ 8 years, which is also equivalent to a population doubling time of 5.5 yr,
with a weak dependence on the precise value of 𝑁𝑁𝑖𝑖 . This growth rate requires each existing CU (and citizen) to
contribute to the construction of 0.12 CU per year. Those CU consist of infrastructure, tools and materials that are
constantly circulating within the city and, as happens on Earth, they will degrade overtime and will require
maintenance. Assuming that each CU needs need to be fully renovated every 20 years (this would be a requirement
for any machine or infrastructure of the city), 0.06 CU/yr need to be added to the construction rate, leading to a
minimum production rate of 0.126 CU/yr per citizen.
This growth model is accompanied by a robust and scalable Earth-Mars transportation system, capable of
guaranteeing the flow of immigrants to sustain Nüwa’s development, which can be found in the report9.
The growth model leads to three natural development phases shown in Figure 2. In phase 1, the imports still
dominate over the local growth rate. After a certain time (about a decade), the exponential curve would need to take
over (phase 2). Finally, the exponential growth needs to stop to avoid having a lot of useless development
infrastructure once the target final population is achieved (phase 3). In this third phase, the activity can shift from
development to a more diversified economy (i.e. services to improve welfare).
The three phases would also benefit from
evolving organizational structures. In phase 1
the development and work need to be highly
organized and efficient (population is still
small) possibly resembling the operations of a
large company or a remote Earth base. Once
entering the second phase, local citizens
should be able to decide on local governance
matters, and a system of rules specifically
adapted to the Martian city reality. Especially
in the third phase, and with the lower pressure
into the development sector, the economic
activity should further diversify thus
producing a rich self-developing Martian Figure 2. Time-line of Nüwa's growth as presented in Eq. 2 model
society and culture, and a fully developed together with important political organizational milestones.
quasi-independent government.
This growth model is over simplistic, but it is a first step to produce a conservative zero-order approximation of
what to expect, and plan accordingly. The city can survive and grow as long as the design ensures a growth rate larger
than the decay time of a CU. Improvements and refinements to the model should include more sophisticated scaling
𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 1
laws for CU production. An example could be assuming = 𝑁𝑁 𝛼𝛼 ,with 𝛼𝛼 > 1 due to economies of scale, and the
𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 𝑇𝑇
role of experience and local innovation 19. Further evaluation of a more complex growth model would be required in
a more detailed future study.
B. Resources from Mars

If a city is supposed to develop autonomously and self-sufficiently, all its systems, parts, living organisms,
buildings, and services need to build from local resources only. However, a seed infrastructure still needs to be
deployed first. Defining how to exactly deploy this seed infrastructure is very important but it is out of the scope of
the current exercise, which focusses on the growth from this initial seed up to the 1M inhabitants. To assess the
feasibility of the design, an inventory of all the physical assets that need to be incorporated to the infrastructure for
adding a person to the city is required. We implicitly assume a circular economy, where all incorporated materials
remain in the system. The design of such industrial, human and biological ecosystem is out of the scope of this study.
However, to facilitate this at the inventory level, we assume a minimal diversity of metals and other materials to the
bare minimum. These include in order of most consuming to less: food production areas, living quarters and city
infrastructure, energy production and distribution and welfare state facilities (including public buildings, hospitals,
parks, etc.). The budget also includes biomass, air, water and nutrients required to sustain each human under the

assumptions given in the LSS chapter. At very high level, the practical approach to derive this inventory can be
summarized in 3 steps:
• Step 1: List all required items and estimate material costs based on Earth manufacturing and construction standards.
• Step 2: Map each of the Earth materials into the Martian equivalent ones. Minimizing material diversity allows
improved reusability, recyclability and greatly reduces manufacturing complexity. This mapping should also
resource collector machines that can be summarized as: pumps for atmosphere capture (CO2, and other gases)
and mining hardware (road headers and surface miners), and match their number to the required amount to meet
the target growth rate of 0.126 CU/yr. A budget of average power needed to process all materials using the
reference tables 20, needs to be included. Processing power overheads due to additional difficulties of working on
a harsher environment than on Earth also need to be taken into account at this point.
Key different processes adapted to Mars are those needed to start carbon-based value chains, such as conversion
of CO2 into syngas (Reverse Water Gas Shift reaction) and methane (Sabatier process) into more complex
hydrocarbons. Water electrolysis shall also be used to produce hydrogen to be used in numerous value chains as
well. Molecular oxygen is always produced as a byproduct of H, C, and metal smelting, so huge surpluses of it
are always obtained. Metal extraction would mainly consist of iron processing and smelting using thermal
reduction with Hydrogen (which is not consumed), thus minimizing the use of specialty metals (Aluminum,
Titanium, Copper or Tungsten needed in smaller amounts).
• Step 3: Addition of reforming, manufacturing and finishing energy overheads using estimates for light, medium
and heavy industry and imposing the production rate of 0.126 CU/yr per citizen.
Since the energy infrastructure also requires energy and materials to build-up itself, this process needs to be solved
iteratively as illustrated in Figure 3. For Nüwa, the end result of this iterative procedure results on a total power
consumption for CU of 117 kW, which includes the LSS power needs to support the humans (about 37 kW). Despite
this number is subject to large uncertainty (it strongly depends on key processes such as metal smelting, and polymer,
semiconductors and advanced organics manufacturing) it is a key indicator of the difficulties of operation in Mars
compared to Earth (the value on Earth is approximately 10 - 30 kW). It is also important to remark that the procedure
can be updated and implemented in other situations as technologies evolve and more realistic operational costs are
obtained via experiments and demonstrators. A summary of the most relevant resources and work materials is given
in Table 1.
Table 1 Nüwa main materials, both raw and
transformed.
Raw material Tons/CU

H2O (from clays) 84
CO2 (from atmosphere) 114
N2 (from atmosphere) 2.2
Ar (from atmosphere) 3.1
O2 (by-product) (126)
Rock (mined) 300
Clays (mined) 1000
Transformed material Tons/CU
Gravels and concrete 311
Simple mineral derivatives 36
Iron and steel 60
Polymers and organics 36
Speciality metals 7.8
Advanced materials 8.9
Figure 3. Iterative Materials and Energy budget
estimation process.
IV. Urban planning

The urban design, as previously explained, includes five cities, with Nüwa as their capital. Each city accommodates
about 200,000 people. Aside from Nüwa, the rest of the cities follow the same urban strategy, such as Abalos City,
located in the North Pole to leverage the access to ice, or Marineris City, located in the most extensive canyon of the
Solar System. The solution, a city excavated in the cliffs, is a flexible and scalable model that could be easily applicable
in many other Martian surface areas. The city of Nüwa is on the slope of one of the Martian cliffs with abundant water
access, located at Tempe Mensa. A steep terrain offers the opportunity to create a vertical city inserted into the rock.
6

As mentioned in Section II.C, the construction inside the cliffs protects inhabitants from radiation and
micrometeorites, and provides indirect sunlight. It also solves the pressure and temperature differences between the
inside and the outside. Figure 4 shows a conceptual section of the cliff, which contains: the wall, the valley and the
mesa.
Figure 4. Conceptual section of the cliff, and location of the five cities proposed
A. The wall
The "Macro-buildings", with a total volume of 125,000,000 m3 per city, are excavations inside the rock of the cliff.
These constructions, implemented after tunneling, are modular and include residential and work activities, linked
together by a three-dimensional network of tunnels. Each Macro-building accommodates 4,440 people and is self-
sufficient for the day-to-day activities on Mars.
The modules that create these buildings include tunnels of
10 meters in diameter and 60 meters long, with two floors.
There are three different residential and three work modules,
providing a highly flexible and scalable opportunity by
recombining the modules as needed, as it can be seen in Figure
5. By giving this standardization, the design ensures scalability
and reduces complexity, costs, and construction schedules. All
modules include green areas and urban gardens, spaces
dedicated to art, and condensation areas, called "Snow-domes",
that help dissipate heat and clean the air. The urban gardens are
small community parks with animals and bodies of water
designed to provide physical and psychological well-being. To
create an emotional linkage with Earth, the design team has
included vast, artificially created natural spaces in Nüwa. They
are named "Green-domes", and there are two types: those that
allow human presence and act as parks, and those that include
experimental vegetation in an environment with a purely
Martian atmosphere. As each macro-building is self-sufficient,
the population in Nüwa can grow as needed. The first colony
can be as little as 4,440 people and it can grow while the rest
of the city is built. The city is expected to be completed after Figure 5. Typical modules in a "Macro-building".
50 years, when its population will reach 250,000.

The "Macro-buildings" on the cliff are connected by high-speed elevator systems, similar to skyscrapers on Earth.
This infrastructure also connects the bottom of the cliff with the top, and has intermediate stops at the "Sky-lobbies"
that connect the "Macro-buildings" with a separate elevating system.
B. The mesa and the valley

The highest point of the cliff is the Mesa. This vast plain contains the infrastructure dedicated to manufacturing,
food production, and energy generation. At the foot of the cliff, large pavilions have been located for social interaction
in the Valley. These pavilions have been designed with translucent skin to offer views of the landscapes of Mars.
These domes are protected from external radiation by large overflying canopies. The material from the cliff's
excavation is dumped (i.e. directly reused) on top of such roofs as radiation shield. This strategy avoids waste
management at a large-scale. In the valley, there are also specific structures to house hospitals, schools and
universities, sports and cultural activities, shopping areas, and train stations that communicate with the space shuttle.
An artificial mountain created with additional material extracted from the excavations acts as a visual frame for the
city and to decrease the fluctuations of temperature. It includes auxiliary energy systems, storage, and parking spaces
for rovers and intra-city trucks.
C. The activities and built areas

In addition to buildings to live, work, educate, and facilitate social interactions, a human settlement on Mars also
requires structures to fulfill the essential functions of air, water, and food production. In Nüwa and its adjacent cities,
all the architectural constructions include additional safety aspects to regulate the internal atmospheric pressure and
offer refuge zones for emergency cases. Several common spaces act as firebreaks and shelter for citizens until rescue
units' arrival in case of an emergency. Air showers have been placed at each "Macro-building" entrance to clean and
sterilize as health protection measures. Artificial Intelligence (AI) will also play an essential role in Nüwa's building
standards to help maintain optimal conditions and minimize risks.
Table 2 shows a broad estimation of the floor area and volumes per person of different infrastructure of the city.
These values are obtained by Table 2. Built-up areas and buildings volume in Nüwa
measuring the diversity of spaces in (Total population 200,000 people).
the city, which have been planned Floor area Volume
based on the Nüwa architectural (m2/person) (m3/person)
team experience and the restrictions Volume of spaces suitable for humans in Nüwa
of building inside the rock (e.g. a Macro-buildings (in the wall) 150 625
certain distance between tunnels is High-Speed Elevator System + Sky-lobbies (in the wall) 0.625 125
required). Tunnel-Gardens (Valley) 1 10
Some of the spaces in the city are Galleries & Arcades (Valley, underground) 12.35 115
suitable for humans while others Pavilions (Valley) 1.25 22.5
require special equipment. The total Low-Impact Industrial Buildings (Mesa) 3.75 37.5
built-up area of the city is 55.6 Space Shuttle hub (nearby crater) 0.4 2.5
million m2, which is equivalent to Volume of spaces not suitable for humans in Nüwa
278 m2 per person, where 162 m2 are MEP domes & Snow-domes (in the wall), MEP Pavilions 22.5 225
related to spaces suitable for humans Energy Buildings (Mesa) (Area for solar panels not included) 1.5 15
and the rest are for supporting areas. Agricultural Buildings (Mesa) 75 450
As a qualitative reference, the ISS High-Impact Industrial Buildings (Mesa) 5 50
has an habitable volume of 65 m3 per Storage and Support Buildings (Valley, artificial mountain) 5 12
person (for the usual crew of 6) 21. TOTAL: 278.4 1689.5
On Earth, Manhattan, with a peak of 2 million people per day, has an approximate of 260 million m2, including
buildings, related civil infrastructure, and outdoor breathable areas, like streets and parks. Therefore, a highly dense
urban development like the “Big-Apple” can be associated with an approximate of 130 m2 per person. This area does
not include all the required spaces for agriculture, industrial, and energy production. On Earth, the surface occupied
by these spaces would be substantially higher than the 116 m2 per person required in Nüwa and are usually not situated
within the urban areas. For example, for agricultural purposes (both for direct human consumption and livestock),
over 6,000 m2 per person are used on Earth 22.
Vertical mobility within the city is carried out through high-speed elevators. Additionally, a system of buses and
light-trains provides intra-city horizontal transport. These intra-city transportation systems are electric and within
pressurized spaces. A network of train stations connects to the space airport, located at a nearby crater. The mobility
between different Martian cities is provided by buses or trains that travel on paved roads.

Nüwa and adjacent cities exponentially accommodate their population. After an initial short period of capital
investment and supply from Earth, this urban development on Mars maintains and grows by its own means and in a
sustainable manner. All the materials required for constructing the city are obtained on Mars by processing Carbon
and other minerals, and as a result, steel, and its derivatives, are extensively used for the construction systems in Nüwa.
V. Life Support System

The Life Support System is in charge of providing all required resources for human survival and it takes care of
the human produced wastes. To ensure a sustainable city on Mars, all waste products will be treated to produce fresh
new resources.
A. Life Support requirements

On average, every human requires 0.186 kg/day of O2, 1.5 kg/day of food, about 10 kg of water per day (2.5 kg
potable water for drinking and food preparation and, the rest for hygiene purposes) 23. That means that for 1 million
people living on Mars 820 t of O2, 1,500 t of food and 10,000 t of water will be required per day. Humans will produce
waste products, which include about 1 kg/day of CO2, and solid (feces) and liquid waste (urine, condensate, sweat).
Which will need to be collected and processed.
Current LSS onboard the ISS use physico-chemical technologies, which are able to recycle 90% of water and
recover 42% the O2 from the CO2 astronauts produce 24. Food is fully produced on Earth and brought to the station.
Future missions, such as a Moon base or an exploration mission to Mars are likely to include some biological
technologies to complement those existing technologies. A 1-Million-city-on-Mars LSS might look much different to
those ISS technologies, relying mostly on biological systems.
The design of Nüwa is at a very initial phase, thus the goal of this chapter is to explain the LSS concept and provide
some rough estimates on the system sizing, based on published experimental data. As the design advances, a more
detailed analysis, including system simulations will be required.
B. Life Support concept

The LSS concept for Nüwa is summarized in Figure 6. It includes several living organisms to ensure a full closure
of all LSS-loops, including atmosphere, food, water and waste management.
Crops and microalgae are in charge of producing 50% and 20% of the food respectively, while processing CO2
into O2 and taking part in the water processing system. Both crops and microalgae grow in the agricultural modules,
Figure 7, the atmosphere of which is independent from the living compartments. That allows the use of a CO2-rich
atmosphere (3,000 ppm). Together with the use of hydroponic systems and adaptive LED-lighting, this ensures a
highly efficient cultivation. The LED can ensure that the plants obtain the required lighting for efficient growth at all
phases, independently from solar irradiation, which on Mars is considerably lower than on Earth. The system will
require 37 kW per person. With these conditions, a surface of about 100 m2 per person for crop production, and 250 L
microalgae reactors are required according to current experiments. 25,26,27,28
Figure 6. Nüwa's Life Support System concept. Figure 7. Agricultural modules.

Percentages represent the food contribution of each
element.

In the living compartments CO2 is collected, together with water, through cold precipitation. This is achieved by
expanding the pressurized air into large, but closed volumes exposed to the surface of the planet, the "Snow-domes".
The expanding gas goes through a turbine producing mechanical energy, losing heat, and its temperature further drops
(Joule-Thomson effect). As a result, CO2 and air humidity freeze into snow that falls to the bottom. Other gases (O2,
N2, and Ar) do not become liquid, and can be re-injected into the system with a compressor (using energy from the
turbine) to the pressurized environment. The CO2 can then be transported to the agricultural modules, while the water
goes to the water management system.
Besides crops and microalgae, other living organisms will complement the diet. Several potential animal and insect
farming species have been considered to provide a first estimate of surface and resources required. Insects, even if
they are not widely introduced in western diets, are highly efficient. Typical values for insects are that 80% of insect
mass is edible 29,30, while for fish and other farm animals, such as chickens, cows or pigs, the amount of edible mass
is reduced to an average of 55% 31. Insects consume less than 3,000 liters of water for each kilogram of meat produced,
while farm animals will consume between 5,000 and 16,000 liters29. Animals are expensive to grow and maintain
compared to crops or algae, but they provide a positive psychological effect and can serve as a buffer in the system.
Due to the small amount of daily consumption considered (4%), the required surface for land farming is estimated to
be less than 0,5 m2 and the volume for fish production less than 600 L.
Cellular meat production should provide about 15% of the daily food consumption. Although this method of meat
production is still not implemented in our daily life, several companies are currently working on that and it is
reasonable to think that in the project timeframe the technology would be fully developed. It is estimated that, to
produce 240 g/day, 3.31 m2 system will be required27. Other living organisms, such as mushrooms should also be
considered to ensure a balanced diet.
Finally, several bacteria will be in charge of processing both the solid and liquid waste. The system should be
composed of several types of bacteria, to be able to break the waste products into the elements required for the LSS,
e.g. nutrients for the algae and crop. A first rough estimation, based on published data25,32, shows that a volume of
1.6 m3 and 3.5 kW per person will be needed.
C. Life Support integration

The LSS cannot be an independent system but it needs to be integrated with the city architecture, since it is required
everywhere. Several green areas are placed within the city, which partially contribute to air regeneration. Animals and
insects will also be placed in the human living areas, distributed among the city. The vegetation and animals act as
buffers of organic matter as well. A "Snow-dome", for water and CO2 collection is placed in every module, i.e. 12 in
each "Macro-building".
The agricultural modules, Figure 8, are located in
the mesa and composed of 27 hexagons, providing
16 km2 of build surface. Each hexagon is divided in
several modules, with two floors each. The lower level
is fully LED-dependent, while in the upper level
sunlight could complement the LEDs. This distribution
ensures a crop cultivation surface of 100 m2 per person
and space for the algae and bacteria reactors still
providing some safety margin.
Thanks to the reduced atmosphere (not breathable
for humans), the pressure difference with the exterior is
Figure 8. View of the mesa, with the agricultural and very low and the structure can be much simpler.
power modules.
The LSS infrastructure requires per person about 110 m2 surface, 37 kW, 8,000 kg of water, 100 kg of nutrients and
240 kg of O2 (to fill the atmosphere of breathable compartments). In the mesa, several solar panels and collectors
(2,700 m2 per person), as well as a nuclear reactor, ensure the provision of all the power (117 kW) needed per person.
VI. Conclusions
Nüwa is high-level development plan for a sustainable 1 Million-people settlement on Mars, designed by SONet
for the Mars Society Competition 2020. It consists of five cities built in the cliffs of Mars. The project considers
engineering, architectural, socio-economic and political aspects, among others. This paper focuses on three main
aspects: development concept, urban planning and Life Support System.
10

The City Unit concept represents the infrastructure required to add one citizen into the city. Under our assumptions
and the boundaries set by the competition, each citizen should contribute to 0.126 CU/year, which sets the constrains
on the resource extraction and power consumption rates.
For Nüwa, high amounts of energy are needed to guarantee human survival: 37 kW per inhabitant only for life and
a total of 117 kW to keep up the target development rate. In developed countries on Earth ~11 kW are typically used
per person. Energy consumption is proportional to the amount of work that needs to be executed/supervised per person,
which points to a key need for the development of a Martian city: to take standardization, automation and AI into
account at design level across all economic activities. On the other hand, the overall material budget per person
obtained for the Nüwa design is comparable to Earth’s (about 800 Tn of minerals for a person living 70 years in a
developed country, without taking into account the mining of the water).
Nüwa needs the ability to cope with potential future uncertainties, i.e. it needs to be resilient. In the design,
resilience is improved by redundancy, i.e. no basic function is covered by a single solution, and by careful design,
considering a range of approaches and their performance under distinct plausible futures. This approach is not limited
to the physical elements, but in the economic aspects as well. Some examples of how specific design decisions help
improve its overall resilience have been mentioned in this paper.
The design of Nüwa foresees the construction of the city excavated in the cliffs of Mars as a solution to several
environmental and human factor constraints. Compared to other underground possibilities, excavating in the cliffs,
allow for a denser three-dimensional urban net, which is crucial given the size of the cities. The concept includes
"Macro-buildings" with living and working compartments inside the wall, bigger facilities in the valley, and required
support infrastructure in the mesa. Buildings are modular to be able to isolate specific sections in case of an accident,
providing resilience as well. The city includes a surface suitable for humans of 162 m2 per person.
The LSS tasks are fulfilled by a combination of living organisms. Crops, algae, insects and cellular meat production
are the main food sources. Farming animals and vegetation are only included in small amounts in the living areas for
their physiological effects and to act as a system buffer. The LSS design proposed in this project is only a first
conceptual design. Although the systems planned are currently available and used on Earth, further questions need to
be answered in a more detailed study. For example, the selection of the crops or insects, how can long-term stability
be guaranteed, how will the use of medicines by humans influence the water recycling, etc. The LSS Infrastructure
requires per person about 110 m2 surface, 37 kW, 8,000 kg of water, 100 kg of nutrients and 240 kg of O2.
The project Nüwa has been the first step in studying the feasibility of developing sustainable Mars settlement for
1 Million people. It provides a first estimation of the systems required, looking both at the raw materials as well as the
energy needed to process them. The results obtained, in terms of materials and energy, and the consideration of
technologies (either in use or currently under development) suggest that such a settlement should be technically
feasible. However, further research is required, and several critical aspects, such as long terms effects of radiation,
reduced gravity, and practical implementation of a circular economy, still need to be analyzed in more detail before
such a settlement can become a reality.
Acknowledgments
The authors of this paper would like to thank the SONet Nüwa team, for the work done during the Mars Society
Competition.
The authors of the project are: Guillem Anglada-Escudé, PhD (Institute for Space Science CSIC & Institut
d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC), Spain), Miquel Sureda PhD (Space Science and Technology Research
Group - Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya & Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya, Spain), Gisela Detrell PhD
(Institute of Space Systems - Universität Stuttgart, Germany), Alfredo Muñoz (ABIBOO Studio, USA), Owen Hughes
Pearce (Pearce +, UK), Gonzalo Rojas (ABIBOO Studio, Argentina), Engeland Apostol (Sheep Air Support, UK),
Sebastián Rodríguez (ABIBOO Studio, Argentina), Verónica Florido (ABIBOO Studio, UK) Professor Ignasi
Casanova (Institute of Energy Technologies (INTE) - Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Spain) Miquel Banchs i
Piqué PhD (School of Civil Engineering & Surveying - University of Portsmouth, UK), Philipp Hartlieb PhD,
(Montanuniversität Leoben, Austria), Professor David Cullen (Space Group - University of Cranfield, UK), Laia
Ribas PhD (Institut de Ciències del Mar/CSIC, Spain), David de la Torre PhD (Dept. de Física - Universitat
Politècnica de Catalunya, Spain).
Further contributors: Jordi Miralda Escudé (ICREA, UB, Spain), Rafael Harillo Gomez-Pastrana (Consultant in
Space Law, Spain), Lluis Soler PhD (UPC, Spain), Paula Betriu (UPC, Spain), Uygar Atalay (UPC, Spain); Pau
Cardona (UPC, Spain), Oscar Macia (UPC, Spain), Eric Fimbinger (Montanuniversität Leoben, Austria), Stephanie
Hensley (Stephanie Hensley LLC, USA), Carlos Sierra (ICE/CSIC, Spain), Elena Montero (Sentido Psicología,
Spain), Robert Myhill (U. Bristol, UK), Rory Beard (UK).
11

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12
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The Nüwa Concept. A development model for a self-sustainable city on Mars
Technical Report · March 2021

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PROLOGUE
The spacecraft in which we have traveled for eight months has just landed gently on the surface. Passengers stared at each other in disbelief, still feeling numb
from the brutality of the supersonic retropropulsion during the braked descent. It seems unbelievable... We are on Mars! Many of us have arrived in recent
years. Thousands upon thousands of people traveling from our comfortable blue home to the uncertain red dream. The promise of a new world. An opportunity
to rethink everything, in order not to repeat the same mistakes. Beyond the polarized glass windows, the light of the Martian dawn spills over Tempe Mensa.
The Sun is a small golden circle, surrounded by two bright points: Venus and the Earth. A few kilometers from the spaceport, the gigantic extensions of the
greenhouses domes are outlined. Beyond, the land descends steeply down the south-facing cliff. On its vertical walls awaits Nüwa, the wonderful city that leads
the accelerated settlement of Mars. Its name recalls the goddess who protects humans. And, certainly, the city protects and provides us with everything we need.
Now, I’ll become part of Mars; I will dissolve into Nüwa, and join all those that give life to it. And we will become Nüwa, forever...
The Nüwa concept is not only an urban solution for a city on Mars; it obsolete [3]. Resilience can be improved by redundancy, meaning that no
is an attempt to sketch a long-term plan for a new human society. It is a function is covered by a single solution. This is our effort into designing
society that uses data to make decisions and applies science to understand, one of these futures, including considerations on sustainability as much
tame, and cherish the world. This is a society whose infrastructure emerges as possible. The principles of self-sustainability can be expanded into
from air, water, rock, and light, but that is shaped by our ingenuity and our these top-level functional requirements:
collective desire to work towards a better, more sustainable future…because • Collect and process its own resources (primary sector)
if we can restart society on Mars, Earth problems can be solved too. • Sustain its own growth by manufacturing all its parts (secondary
Sustainability, but especially self-sustainable development is at the core sector)
of the Nüwa concept. For being self-sustainable, a settlement on Mars • Maintain a safe and good living standard of the population (services)
needs to be able to obtain all resources locally. For example, energy • Provide mechanisms for individual and collective improvement
is the underlying resource that ALL processes need. A fundamental (governance)
characteristic of energy sources is their EROI (Energy Return on Primary sector functions include all functions related to resource
Investment): the ratio between the amount of usable energy and the gathering, material processing using physical and chemical processes,
amount of energy used to that end. This concept can be applied to whole and energy production including generation, storage and distribution.
societies too, which allows investigating minimum EROI required to Compared to Earth, secondary sector functions must follow 1) use
thrive [1]. For Earth, this minimum EROI is estimated at around 12-14:1 of local inputs only, 2) enable recyclability by design, and 3) self-
(5:1 in severely impoverished countries) [2]. The minimum EROI of replicability of the whole infrastructure. In terms of capabilities, they
a Martian society must be higher than that on Earth (Mars is a hostile shall be able to use metals, polymers, ceramic and glassy materials,
place), and the EROI values of the more mature Martian energy options perform product and manufacturing transformations (physical &
(nuclear & solar) are around the so-called energy cliff zone, where small chemical), produce machines, make advanced electronics, construction
changes in EROI carry large changes in energy available to society. This materials and textiles, among others. Finally, end use functions shall
has two significant consequences: 1) it is critical to keep EROI high; 2) a include the manufacturing of components for both infrastructure and
large percentage of the economic activity must be on energy production. operations of other systems.
In addition, settlements need the ability to cope with potential future Some service functions consist of essential human support functions
uncertainties; at the risk of creating assets that become prematurely such as housing in various forms, and life support including atmosphere,
1
water, food and waste management. Services shall also cover other
human factors related to the wellbeing of the citizens at individual
and community level (noise, privacy, etc.) via communal space and
mechanism to identify possible needs, dedicated professionals &
infrastructure, and the promotion and development of social welfare.
In terms of safety legislation, the city should enforce construction and
manufacture standards to protect its citizens against the reality of life
on Mars (fire, pressure loss, structural, chemical, mechanical hazards),
which shall also follow stricter rules of resilience and redundancy.
Additional services include city operation functions such as distribution
(water, air, energy…), distribution of goods, human transportation, social
welfare and education facilities, support to surface operations, access
to network and computing services, communications, and logistics Figure 2. Close view of the cliff with the Green-Domes
management. In terms of governance, the city shall provide institutions
with executive, legislative & judiciary functions, law enforcement collection, transformation, manufacture and construction, 50%),
mechanisms, digital administration, transparency & anti-corruption, law Innovation & research (to develop solutions for increasing r, 10%) and
codes, and diplomatic representation. Services (20%, which is much lower than in a modern western country).
Surpluses are important because they can accelerate the growth rate,
improve the life quality of its inhabitants (incentive to entrepreneurship
and personal progress); and as a mitigation measure against contingencies
THE NÜWA CONCEPT (dust storms, turmoil on Earth, and other disasters).
The city shall also engage in minor economic activities especially oriented
1 - Development Concept and Timeline to services for Earth entities (private & institutions), which shall be spent
After a short initial phase relying on capital investments and supplies in supporting Earthbound activities, developing the Earth part of the
from Earth, a large-scale urban development to accommodate one million Earth-Mars transportation system, and importing goods of high-density
people shall be able to sustain its growth with local resources only. Our value, such as electronics and rare catalysts. For the model to work, all
underlying economic model is built around the concept of the City Unit the material cycles and costs must be designed following standards of
(or CU), which corresponds to one human and all the material budget economic circularity and Energy Return on Energy Investment (EROI)
associated with it. For the city to grow one inhabitant, its infrastructure considerations. That is, once a material is integrated into the system, it
must be able to ingest and incorporate all the resources of one CU. shall not leave it.
Assuming that the CU production rate r is proportional to N (number of
existing CU), and that there is a constant flow ni of CU imported from 2 - Development of Phases, Institutions and System of Values
Earth; the rate of change of CUs can be written as dN/dt=N/T+ni /T, Figure 3 also shows that there are three natural development phases
where T=1/r is the characteristic growth timescale and is a function of associated with our model. These phases set the pace on how the
the boundary conditions. Imposing an initial population of N0=103, that governance of the cities and the Martian economy evolves over time.
N must be 106 after 50 years (yr), and that the rate of Earth imports ni • Phase 1 – Corporate (years 0 to ~10). The growth supported by
becomes small compared to N quickly, we obtain a minimum growth rate imports dedicated to high-value machines and components. This phase
of 0.12 CU/yr as illustrated in Figure 3. Assuming that each CU needs can afford subpar production, and it ends when the 0.126 CU/yr growth
to be renovated every 20 years, we add 0.005 CU to this requirement rate threshold is exceeded (pop ~10k, after about 10 years). All colonists
reaching a development threshold value of rt = 0.126 CU/yr. This means must be experienced and motivated individuals (age ~’30s). Individual
that every eight citizens should be able to contribute one CU per year. freedom and privacy are guaranteed, but citizens are formally workers
for the Mars Enterprise and remain citizens of their countries. The Mars
Qualified immigration is necessary to keep the growth rate, so providing Enterprise is managed like a large public/private consortium with an
good live standards is essential. The focus of the nascent Martian approximate power balance of Earth governments (40%), private interests
economic activity is likely to be around Maintenance (life support, (30%), and the United Nations (UN, 30%) via the UNOOSA (United
energy, consumables and operations, ~20%), Development (resource Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs.). The UN participation formally
Figure 1. View of the inside of one type of Earthly-Green-Domes Figure 3. The Nüwa development concept
2
acknowledges that the resources of space belong to the humankind, and
effectively implements a similar arrangement given to countries hosting
scientific infrastructures. Operations are regulated under the Mars
Colony Act (MCA). MCA follows the spirit of both the Agreement for
the development of the International Space Station, and the (updated)
Planetary Protection Policy issued by COSPAR. The act must include
essential rights and obligations, controversial disputes system, criminal
regulation and the first approach to licensing for natural resources, goods,
trade and import-export regulations, and the framework to regulate
private property. In all practical aspects, daily governance resembles that
of an Antarctic base. The Mars Enterprise selects colonists, covers Earth-
Mars transport expenses, provides housing and all the basic needs, but
not all welfare services are fully developed yet. As an incentive, these Figure 5. Conceptual section of a Martian-Green-Dome
settlers are given one Mars City Share (MCS) each, which will be later
used to distribute surpluses. No return trips are possible yet. Credit) are issued and proportionally distributed among MSC holders.
• Phase 2 – Semi-autonomous phase (years 10 to ~45). This is the Micros can be used to purchase part of the surplus infrastructure from the
central and most crucial phase of the development. Earth financed imports Mars city council, providing intrinsic asset value to the coin. MSC can
become unnecessary (end of Earth investment), and the growth becomes be traded with micros, but no citizen can hold less than ½ MCS and no
exponential. In addition to the development of the Mars cities, growth more than 5 MCS to avoid the rise of severe inequality. The maximum
is also bolstered by the development of the Earth-Mars transportation amount of total assets held by one individual should also be capped at the
system, and the corresponding reduction of immigration costs in Earth equivalent of 5 CU (or 5 million micros). Only Martian companies with
currency. Launches from Earth are still needed, which shall be self- participation of the Mars City Council or the Mars Enterprise (which
financed by motivated applicants attracted to the wonders of Martian should hold at least 40% of the shares & decision power) can hold values
life, which will then be selected via lottery. The Mars Enterprise will above this threshold. While basic services are still provided by the city,
set quotas to ensure a balanced workforce, but that is also representative additional services can now be traded in the open market. This trade
of the Earth’s population and cultures. One Mars ticket will have an is the seed to entrepreneurship, which shall now freely develop. Since
approx. price tag of 300k USD (200k USD + 100k for Earth operations all the transactions are digital, they can be automatically taxed, with a
and financing imports), and it includes: a one-way trip, one residential practical implementation depending on the politics of the moment. The
unit (~25.5 m2/person), full access to common facilities, all life support issue of the first micros marks the beginning of a true Martian economy.
services & food, and a binding work contract to devote between 60% The Mars Technical University (MTU) is created with the goals of
and 80% of their work time to tasks assigned by the Mars City Council training the workforce based upon need, fostering innovation to increase
(MCC). By default, all newcomers also receive ½ MCS, and up to one the development rate r, and support basic research activities which shall
additional MSC can be purchased with Earth currency before departure. be mainly driven by Earth’s vast knowledge and intellectual base. Return
Even if immigration slows down, the city is self-sufficient already. trips can now be purchased to the MCC at a cost in micros. Remaining
The MCC is a new institution formed by democratically elected MCS can be sold back to the Mars Enterprise at a non-negotiable rate in
representatives. It manages and legislates daily life on Mars, and it Earth’s currency. An independent judiciary branch of the government,
is promoted and legally bound to the higher authority of the Mars and a law enforcement body is also established in this phase.
Enterprise. Most of the population growth is in the initial center (Nüwa), • Phase 3 – Towards independence (year 45+). After three decades
but the construction of a second urban center begins nearby (Fuxi). The of exponential growth (and a total Mars population reaching 500k),
construction of a polar water mining settlement (Abalos) starts once experience and innovation shall lead to a rate of unit production well
Mars can locally manufacture nuclear reactors and fuel. Plans for two over the minimum threshold, and the core of the free-market economy
additional urban centers near the equator (Marineris and Ascraeus) based on the micro shifts naturally to other activities. Mars is still a
also begin, but they shall not start until the initial city reaches a critical frontier territory, so all citizens should still contribute to its sustainability
population size of 200k. (20% mandatory community work to cover essential tasks). A complete
A system of currency is created in this phase as well. For each surplus CU, Body of Law for questions including a Constitution, shall be created.
one million crypto-tokens informally called micros (or Micro City Unit It establishes the creation of a Mars Parliament which shall absorb the
legislative powers of the Mars City Council and the Mars Enterprise,
and act as the institutional representation of the people of Mars. The
parliament will then elect a chancellor and a ministerial cabinet to deal
with executive matters and implement diplomatic relations with Earth. At
this point, the relation with Earth requires redefinition. The opportunity is
used to set up a legal framework for other similar initiatives in The Solar
Federation Treaty (SFT). A possible implementation would be the
creation of a second chamber composed of locally elected representatives
(60%), and a fixed number of representatives from Earth designated
by UNOOSA (40%). The chamber shall have veto powers on new
legislation, and it shall arbitrate in case of conflict between institutions
(executive, parliament, City councils). The debts and commitments with
the Mars Enterprise shall be settled, and then the Mars Enterprise shall
Figure 4. View of the inside of a Martian-Green-Dome be dissolved.
3
3 - A place to live: Nüwa and the Cliffs of Mars
Establishing a permanent settlement of one million people on Mars
requires access to a diversity of resources. Therefore, our proposal
divides human settlement into five cities. Nüwa is the capital, with a
population between 200,000 and 250,000 people. Its name has its roots
in the mythological goddess that is the protector of Humans, who melted
five stones to give robust societal pillars. Nüwa provides the environment
for a prosperous Martian settlement by providing 1) Atmosphere; 2) Food
& Water; 3) Shelter; 4) Energy; and 5) A higher purpose of communal
existence. Although we are proposing five cities, our proposal strives to
offer a highly-scalable and flexible solution that can be implemented in
many locations across Mars.
The urban and architectural solution achieves:
1. Total protection from ionizing radiation.
2. Access to indirect sunlight.
3. Efficient use of resources.
4. A low-cost solution for the skin of buildings that solves the difference
in pressure between the inside and the outside air.
5. A sustainable settlement that integrates local conditions and that is
dense enough to minimize its environmental and economic impact.
Mars has hundreds of cliffs, many with inclinations higher than 45

degrees. A cliff provides a broad, structurally stable “vertical” surface,
which is a unique opportunity to create a “vertical city” inside the
cliff, providing 24/7 protection from radiation, while still having many
perforations in the cliff wall’s face to bring indirect sunlight inside. All Figure 6. Conceptual section (top) and front elevation of the cliff (bottom)
five locations proposed have a direct orientation to the Sun (south-facing
cliffs if located in the northern hemisphere), so each urban sector is
maximizing access to sunlight. As these spaces are inside of the rock, the
pressure from the inside of the buildings is structurally absorbed by the
surrounding rock, reducing both cost and risk of failure of the buildings’
skin.
Building into the cliff provides proximity between the city and all of
its supporting infrastructure. Cliffs have large horizontal areas at the
Mesa (top of the cliff) and the Valley (bottom of the cliff), which in this
proposal houses the city’s supporting buildings. This solution creates an
efficient and concentrated urban development that reduces the amount of
infrastructure required to provide a fully functional city.
Although craters and other geological features may also offer some of
the advantages of cliffs, they usually do not provide the rock’s structural
stability, unidirectional orientation to the Sun, and the opportunity for a
dense urban development that cliffs provide.
3.1 The City Configuration

Nüwa and all of its sister urban developments integrate their presence in
the “Mesa”, the “Wall”, and the “Valley” of cliffs. Additionally, each city
comprises five main urban elements that are highly interconnected, and
that can be summarized as follows:
A. Macro-Buildings: Mixed-use excavated structures inside the Wall of

the cliff. Each accommodates 4,440 people. The elevation of the Macro-
Building can be inscribed in a rectangle of 750 meters in length by 200
meters in height. Each Macro-Building is a self-contained construction
that comprises six Residential-Modules and six Work-Modules. Each of
these Modules is an intricate net of three-dimensional ten-meter diameter
tunnels that go as deep as 150 meters into the cliff.
Most of the inhabitants do not need to leave their Macro-Building to
perform their daily activities unless desired. Each Residential-Module
includes Housing-Quarters, Residential-Facilities, Urban-Orchards,
and Art-Domes. Each Work-Module includes Work-Quarters, Office- Figure 7. Type of Modules that comprise each Macro-Building
4
Facilities, and Urban-Orchards. Additionally, all modules include
Green-Domes that are excavated at the cliff wall’s face and that connect
to common areas of the modules, providing natural light and lush
gardens. Each module also includes a Snow-Dome, which dissipates
heat and cleans the air producing snow-like flakes in the process. Each
module also includes horizontal Corridors and Vertical-Cores to connect
the modules vertically. There are three different types of Residential-
Modules and three kinds of Work-Modules (Fig.7). These six “building-
modules” provide standardization, reducing complexity, cost, and time
during construction. Thanks to the modular nature of the Macro-Building,
the solution is extremely flexible, so no two Macro-Buildings are the
same. This flexibility is also critical when adapting to the local geological
and geometrical conditions. Figure 9. Conceptual elevation of a Macro-Building comprising twelve modules
B. Transportation Infrastructure within Macro-Buildings: The D. City Communal Areas: Humans are social beings, so providing
Macro-Buildings are linked with High-Speed Elevator Systems, similar ample spaces for social gatherings is essential for the wellbeing of the
to those of skyscrapers on Earth. This infrastructure connects the top of citizens. Additionally, in terms of the quality of the space, it is vital in
the Cliff (Mesa) with the bottom of the Cliff (Valley), and stops in the a harsh environment, like the one on Mars, to provide large green areas
middle at Sky-Lobbies. These intermediary lobbies provide access to the where humans, plants, and animals interact similarly to how we do in
adjacent Macro-Buildings and their vertical communication systems. city parks on Earth. It is also critical to offer long-distance views of the
The transportation infrastructure on both sides of each Macro-Building outside landscapes, especially when many daily activities will happen
creates a city vertical-grid of 800-meters that can be replicated as needed underground.
to accommodate phases for the Martian settlement. The transportation To achieve this objective, Nüwa includes Pavilions, which are large
infrastructure acts as the bones of the new “urban body,” giving structure domes in the Valley of the Cliff. The proposed solution ensures protection
and flexibility for growth. from radiation by having large, low-cost canopies at a distance over
these Pavilions. The material obtained from excavating the tunnels is
C. Harvesting. Agriculture & Energy: Our proposal locates Farming, reused on top of these canopies. The domes’ main structure absorbs the
Energy Generation, and their related Industrial Processing on the Mesa, pressure from the inside of these Pavilions. Thanks to the mentioned
the substantial flat area on the top of the cliff. Agricultural and energy canopies, the Pavilions’ building skin can be transparent or translucent
production facilities require direct access to sun radiation but do not need in an economical manner. Some of these Pavilions include nature and
a shield from radiation, as only maintenance personnel and robotics will are called Green-Pavilions. In contrast, other types of these dome-like
be operating there. Moreover, the inner air pressure can be substantially structures are the Urban-Pavilions, which provide plazas for public
less than in the human premises. As a result, it is more economical and activities and act as the Agoras of Nüwa.
efficient to build on the Martian surface than to provide these activities These Pavilions connect with other spaces called Galleries, which are
below ground. vast underground spaces, such as sports arenas, music halls, and light train
As the Mesa of a cliff is often flat right from the edge of the cliff, it is stations to communicate with the Space Shuttle Hub. The large volume
beneficial to locate these facilities on the Mesa. These facilities connect of air required inside of these communal areas is solved with 30-meter-
with Low-Impact Industrial Buildings that process the food and energy diameter underground tunnels. The Galleries and Pavilions connect
and distribute the outcome to the rest of the city. These Processing and underground to the High-Speed Elevator Systems through additional
Manufacturing buildings connect with the vertical city’s infrastructure. buildings that are part of these 30-meter-diameter tunneling systems,
The Agricultural Buildings spread longitudinally in the direction of the which comprises of Arcades, that include shopping and entertainment
cliff. Next to these agroproduction facilities, Nüwa includes the solar areas, and Tunnel-Gardens, which are underground gardens at the base
power generation infrastructure, which is of three types: Concentration of the High-Speed Elevator Systems.
Tower Systems, Parabolic Generation Systems, and Photovoltaics On the surface of the Valley, and connected to the underground Galleries,
Generation Systems. On the Mesa, but further from the cliff, we propose the city included support buildings, such as Infrastructure-Pavilion, and
a Nuclear Plant and the High-Impact Industrial Buildings. Advanced Components. Finally, an artificial mountain on the Valley
created with the material extracted from the excavation, which includes
Auxiliary Energy Systems, such as fuel cells, Low-Pressure Tanks,
including ice and solid CO2, and High-Pressure Tanks for CH4 and
Liquid O2 (LOX), among others. The artificial mountain also includes
Storage of Raw Material, Storage of Processed Material, and Parking
Lots, for Rovers and Trucks. This mountain reduces the impact of
temperature variation and provides a visual framework for the arrival by
land to the city.
E. Landscape: The landscape is a fundamental element in Nüwa and

its sister cities. The location itself, being able to live inside a cliff, is a
powerful emotional experience. The integration of the buildings with the
landscape transforms the city into a land-art, creating a unique identity
Figure 8. View of a Tunnel-Garden connecting to the High-Speed Elevator System for its citizens.
5
Nüwa also includes artificially-created landscapes at the Green-Domes,
located on the cliff wall’s face. These spaces are unique to Mars, but at
the same time, bring memories of nature on Earth, creating an emotional
and historical link for the citizens in these Martian communities. There
are two very distinct types of Green-Domes. The first type is called
Earthly-Green-Domes which act as neighborhood parks. Here citizens
come to socialize and enjoy the vistas from the cliff. The second type
is called Martian-Green-Domes, which cannot be accessed due to their
lower atmospheric pressure to recreate conditions for experimental
vegetation more suited to an Earth-Mars intermediate environment. The
considerable diversity of environments at the Green-Domes ensures that
each module has its own personality, identity, and sense of community,
even though the building modules’ architecture is standardized for Figure 11. Proposed Human Settlement in Mars. 5 Cities
scalability and efficiency.
Another different type of landscape is provided at the Urban-Orchards 4 - Location (primary) and Nearby Resources
inside the Residential and Work Modules. These spaces are underground
and integrated with the residential and office quarters. Like small 4.1 Location
community gardens, they include animals, small bodies of water, and Mars receives less irradiation from the Sun than the Earth. Additionally,
limited plantation to provide a physiological benefit to the citizens. the slightly higher orbital eccentricity results in broader differences
The Green-Pavilions, located on the Valley, act as artificially-lighted between the irradiation received at the aphelion (furthest distance from
greenhouses that include lush greenery and water, creating diverse the Sun) and the perihelion (closest distance to the Sun). Nüwa, Fuxi,
ecosystems. These provide space for large gatherings and also create the Marineris and Ascraeus are all located between the equator and 30º north
ideal environment for the farmed animals to flourish. Finally, the Tunnel- latitude, avoiding really extreme weather conditions (see Figure 11:
Gardens create a cave-like landscape that would be very unique to Mars. Proposed Human Settlement on Mars. 5 Cities).
Five locations instead of one are chosen to improve resilience, long term
In summary, the fourth dimension (time) plays a critical role in the easy access to resources and to add mobility options to the citizens of
landscape solution of Nüwa, because depending on the movement of Mars. The chosen location for Nüwa - the first city - is on the southern
its citizens, the architectural experience and its surroundings will be rim of Temple Mensa (28º N, 288º, see Table 1 for an overview of the
completely different and unique. environmental conditions), and the second urban center (Fuxi) is in the
same general region but 170 km to the North-East of Nüwa. The region
3.2 Building Standards was chosen for its easy access to sources of water (clays), insolation
Key safety issues result in unique building types and building standards levels, and abundance of near vertical walls of strong rock.
within the city. Horizontal tunnels include shafts at intervals to regulate
atmospheric pressure and provide an escape to refuge areas if needed, Table 1. Environmental conditions at Tempe Mensa
so in the case of a structural failure or fire, these elements act as the first
barrier, preventing further compromise to the rest of the tunnels. Similar
to shafts, the sky lobbies are at elevation intervals at the High-Speed
Vertical Elevator stack, they provide public shared spaces and gardens,
but also act as a compartmented space between the macro-buildings. In
the unlikely event of a structural failure or fire, the Sky Lobbies lead
to refuge areas designed to protect inhabitants for a prolonged duration
before rescue services arrive.
Air showers will be included at the entrance to each Macro-building to
sterilize and clean garments. Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms will
also play a critical role in Nüwa’s building standards to help manage the The other cities in the Arcadia Quadrangle exhibit a climatology quite
optimal conditions and minimize risk. similar to Nüwa, with some minor differences due to the different
latitudes. The polar location of Abalos, however, is quite different.
Located at 79º north latitude. There, the daily variations of atmospheric
temperature, pressure, and density are almost nonexistent, but these
quantities vary significantly throughout the year. This is especially the
case with the atmospheric temperature, which remains at an almost
constant 150 K for most of the year except for summer, when there is
Sunlight on the poles, and it raises up to 200 K. Thermal designs shall
account for these differences.
4.2 Nearby Resources

Key resources (especially water) should be located near the cities,
to ensure accessibility and ease of extraction. Table 2 summarizes the
availability of water, sulfur, iron, nitrogen, phosphorus, chlorine, and
Figure 10. Aerial view of Nüwa, showing nuclear energy plant (top left), solar energy and
food production areas (top centre) and space shuttle hub (bottom)
regolith, for each of the five cities.
6
Table 2. Key resources availability in each region 5 - Keeping people alive: Life Support Systems & Biosystems
A Mars civilization should be independent of Earth resources and
sustainable in the long-term. Thus, a closed Life Support Systems (LSS),
where all produced bio-waste is collected and transformed in fresh
consumables for the humans is needed.
To reproduce Earth biodiversity is a complex task and cannot be easily
done in a restricted volume (in this case 187,500,000 m3 of breathable air
for a 200,000 inhabitants city). However, several living organisms will
be required to fulfill the tasks needed for full recycling and to ensure a
rich and balanced diet for the city inhabitants. Figure 13 shows the main
structure of the Nüwa LSS.
Figure 13. Nüwa Life Support System concept
Food Management
Crop cultivation will be the main food production source, providing
50% of the human diet, while processing CO2 into O2 and taking part in
the water processing system. Although crops can provide a tastier and
more varied diet than microalgae, those are more efficient in terms of
space and resource utilization, while also contributing to atmosphere
revitalization and water management. Thus, microalgae are selected for
20% of the human diet.
Typical farm animals such as pigs, chicken, or fish will also be included,
As documented, all the cities have access to nitrogen, phosphorus, but in very small amounts. Such animals are very inefficient, but provide
chlorine and regolith, which are crucial resources to develop fertilizers a high psychological value, and can also serve as buffers in the system.
and produce aggregates for construction. Water is available in Tempe They will represent 4% of the human diet. More efficient systems such
Mensa (as clays) and Marineris region’s subsoil, although the most as insects or cellular meat production will be included, representing 10%
convenient source for mass extraction would be the one coming directly and 16% of the human diet, respectively. Other living organisms, such as
from the polar ice around Abalos. Sulfur can be collected in Marineris mushrooms, should also be included.
and Abalos. Minerals rich in iron oxides can also be found everywhere,
but the highest quality ores are likely to be found around Marineris. We Waste Management
assume that most of the main resources necessary to maintain population Bacteria will be in charge of processing both the solid and liquid waste
growth on Mars can be initially found around all the city locations, but products from the humans but also from the other living organisms in
that the latest development phases shall require the use of the richer the system. A combination of several bacteria species will be required
deposits of each city. in order to process the bio-waste into useful resources. They are a key
element since they will provide the required nutrients for the system.
Water Management
Similarly, as we have on Earth, there will be a water-cycle in Nüwa.
Humans, animals, and plants will add water to the atmosphere through
respiration/perspiration/transpiration.
This water will be collected by condensation through the ventilation
system, thus providing pure water. With proper usage of water, requiring
the usage of bio-friendly products for washing and cleaning, the
wastewater produced can be used for gardening and farming. Urine from
humans and animals will be treated by bacteria. It is crucial to control
and eventually filter the substances that go into the water system, for
example, antibiotics, since those could disrupt microbial ecosystems.
Figure 12. Aerial view of Nüwa sister’s Cities proposed locations The reduction of water usage at home, compared to current values in
7
western countries on Earth, is a key aspect to sustainability in Nüwa.
Mist showering or alternative cloth washing systems will ensure that the
required amount of hygiene water per person is decreased to about 7
liters per day.
Air Management
Both the microalgae and crop photosynthesis will produce the oxygen
required to replace the oxygen consumed by humans and animals, but
also the one required for other LSS subsystems, for example, some
bacteria. Besides those food-producing-plants, green areas on the human
spaces will also contribute to the reduction of the carbon dioxide levels
and production of oxygen. Carbon dioxide, excess air humidity, and heat
will be extracted from the human spaces via Snow Domes, and delivered
to the microalgae and crop cultivation areas. Additional temperature,
humidity control and ventilation will also be available for redundancy
and local fine-tuning. An inert gas (a combination of nitrogen or argon)
will also be present in the atmosphere to ensure oxygen levels are kept
within safe limits. This gas will only need to be refurbished due to Figure 15. Nüwa snow domes to collect the CO2
leakages on the system.
drops (Joule-Thomson effect). As a result, CO2 and air humidity freeze
5.1 LSS Facilities into snow that falls to the bottom, and it is transported elsewhere. The
Agricultural Modules. Crops will be cultivated in the agricultural other gases (O2, N2, and Ar) do not become liquid, and they are reinjected
modules, in a CO2-rich atmosphere, with a total pressure of 25 kPa. This with a compressor to the pressurized environment (the compressor uses
will not be breathable for humans, requiring a fully automated cultivation. energy from the turbine) (Fig.15).
A hydroponic system is used to increase cultivation efficiency, requiring,
for example, less water and space than soil-based systems and avoiding Farming Areas. Ground and water lakes for animal farming, as well
the use of pesticides. A cultivation surface of 88 m2 per person is required, as for insect farming, will be placed in the Green-Pavilions since those
which will provide food both directly for human consumption and for the require a similar atmosphere as humans to breathe. Some animals will
other animals in the city. Figure 14 shows the internal distribution of also be in the Earthly-Green-Domes and the Urban-Orchards. Less than
the modules. Some crops will receive direct sunlight complemented with 1.5 m2 of animal/aquaculture/insect farming area is required per person,
artificial light. Some crops will be stacked in vertically distributed trays, due to the low amount of food consumed directly from animals.
thus requiring a dedicated LED panel. Algae, cellular meat, and bacteria
reactors are also located in these modules, either in dark or with 24/7 5.2 Required LSS Resources
artificial lighting, depending on the type of reactor. Those will occupy a In order to initiate the LSS and keep it running, besides the required
surface of 4.5 m2 per person. seeds and cultures, 8tn of water, 100 kg of nutrients (mainly nitrate and
phosphate) and 120 kg of CO2 per person are required. The initiation of
CO2 Extraction in Habitation Modules & Snow Domes. The the system is a critical aspect, since plants and animals require some time
atmosphere in the human habitats will have a total pressure of 75 kPa, to grow before they can be consumed, thus time planning will be crucial.
providing a proper oxygen partial pressure for breathing, but keeping the To fill the atmosphere of the habitat and the agricultural modules 240 kg
oxygen volume under 30% to reduce fire and explosion risk. The CO2 of oxygen and 490 kg of nitrogen per person will be required. The LSS
produced by the inhabitants will be collected through cold precipitation requires 37 kW of power per person, which is mostly necessary for the
of the CO2. In addition to CO2 removal, all spaces also require air crop cultivation lighting system.
circulation and heat removal, which is achieved by expanding the
pressurized air into large, but closed volumes exposed to the surface of The human requirements, as well as data for the design of the
the planet called Snow Domes. The expanding gas goes through a turbine different elements in the LSS are based on available literature
producing mechanical energy, losing heat, and its temperature further [9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18].
Figure 14. Nüwa Agricultural Modules Figure 16. Farming area in Nüwa
8
6 - Resource Collection
Table 3 documents a list of the most common materials needed for manufacturing human items, and it identifies their Martian counterparts. The
production energy costs for some key materials dominating the CU budget are shown in the last column.
Table 3. List of the most common materials needed for manufacturing human items
9
Extracting minerals and digging tunnels is a central activity in creating
city units at Nüwa. With a roadheader like the Sandvik MH621, digging
relatively hard rock at a rate of 20 m3 per hour, and consuming 150 kW
of continuous power (50% of max capacity), only one machine every
400 inhabitants is needed to maintain the production rate. Digging rock
consumes about 0.03 GJ/m3. So, if we need excavating 800 m3 per CU,
we obtain that the excavation contribution of the roadheaders to the CU
energy budget is 21.6 GJ/CU.
The same logic is applied to all the other systems when deriving
required materials and energy. Surface miners, which are similar
machines optimized for surface activities, will be used to extract clays
and mine soft rock at the surface (river bed around Tempe Mensa).
Smaller units, in a swarm-like mode of operation (such as Robominers Figure 17. Conceptual Section with the required excavations for Nüwa (200,000 people)
- https://robominers.eu/) shall be imported during phase 1. The
amount of mineral needed for metal smelting (about 300 tn/CU) is Table 4. Built-up areas and Buildings volume per city
much lower than the excavation requirements for the city, so the same
roadheader machines used to excavate habitats can be temporarily
assigned to work on nearby mining sites (~100 km distance). A fleet of
transportation trucks will be needed. Assuming a truck transporting 20
tons per day translates to one truck for every 48 citizens. Assuming a
20-ton truck, these contribute 0.4 tons of steel to each CU, and about
40 GJ/CU. Some additional materials for the electric power and
batteries might be needed but they remain as minor contributions.
The Martian atmosphere is mainly composed of CO2 (95%), N2, and
argon (at about 2% each) and trace gases. The carbon is essential for the
biological systems, it is needed to manufacture polymers and advanced
organic materials (e.g. disinfectants, and drugs), and small amounts of it to
be used in electrodes to smelt specialty metals such as titanium, tungsten
(preferred material for road header picks), or even Al, Mg and Si. We
estimate that 114 tons of CO2 need to be captured per CU for materials
usage. To estimate the scale of the machines needed to achieve this task,
we extrapolate from a commercial compressor on Earth (0.3 tn of steel,
and a few more materials) with a compression capability of 0.88 tn/hr./
bar leads to the conclusion that one such compressor would be needed for
every 40 citizens. The CO2 (+trace) needs to be then stored in tanks and
sent to the transformation industry. We assume 27 m3 of tanks prepared
to contain high-pressure gases and liquids per citizen. These tanks can
be built with high-performance materials (strong workhorse material
is UHMWP, a very high tensile strength polymer) shielded against the
environment by a layer of solid sintered regolith. This solution should
also be used for pipes transporting gases and liquids under pressure.
Water is the main (only) source of H, which is needed for all organic
chemistry. We estimate that around 80 tons of water are needed per
CU, where 8 tons are for life support and the rest comes from creating
polymers. In the Tempe Mensa area, the preferred water extraction
method exploits clays, which are hydrated minerals with about 5-10% of
mass in water that is released upon heating them up to about 400°C. This
results in about 1300 tn of clay that needs to be mined per CU. Water is
then extracted using residual heat from other reactions or Concentrated
Solar Power. A polar Martian city should be able to access frozen water
from the surface, thus requiring much less mineral processing. Because
of the high latitude, such a city would need nuclear power to be viable
with current technology. It is estimated that this could happen by mid-
phase 2.
There are reports of possible solid water reservoirs in the Tempe Mensa
region. Determining the most optimal way to obtain this water will be the
task of the first initial colony of 1000 people. Given current information,
we conservatively assume the clay method as the baseline process to our
design.
Figure 18. Excavated components of each Macro-Building
10
are needed to produce one ton of H2). While all the C and H remain fixed
to organics, a large surplus of O2 is left as a by-product (130 tons of O2
per CU), while less than 0.3 tons are needed for life support. While it can
be kept in tanks, venting it might be more economical. CH4 and liquid
O2 (or LOX) are the preferred choices for rocket propellants that shall be
used by the Earth-Mars transportation system. Implementation of these
reactions requires a set of specialized chemical factories whose mass and
energy budgets are included in under manufacturing infrastructure.
The workhorse metal for Mars shall be iron and its alloys. Iron oxides
are very abundant on the Martian surface, and the smelting of the ores
into the metal can be done using thermal reduction with hydrogen. In this
process, hydrogen always remains in the cycle, so no water is consumed
in the process. Iron produced this way shall consume about 20 GJ/tn, and
Figure 19. Exterior view of one type of Earthly-Green-Domes
steel (which requires more treatment) consumes about 56 GJ/tn. Other
7 - Chemical Transformation metals such as titanium (also aluminium, or magnesium) can be smelted
Many chemical processes must be enabled to implement the self- using processes based on electrolytic carbon reduction, using graphite
sustainability principle. Here we mention the most important ones that cathodes. Deposits of titanium ore (ilmenite) should not be very rare, and
initiate the chemical pathway providing feedstocks to the manufacturing aluminium and magnesium oxides are present almost everywhere, but
industry (syngas, methane, H2, and pure carbon). preparing them for smelting is difficult. Small amounts of Copper and
• Reverse Water Gas Shift (RWGS) produces syngas (CO + H2), other metals are likely to be produced as a by-product. As an estimate,
which can then be used as the precursor for more advanced materials we assume that 200 GJ are needed to produce a ton of a specialty
such as polymers and organic chemistry. Oxygen is separated at metal, although this number could be considerably higher in some
formation, greatly simplifying the management of the output gases cases. Regarding nuclear material ores, there is not much information
[19]. on possible deposits of uranium on Mars, but it is known that thorium
• Water Electrolysis is the best-known reaction to produce molecular is relatively abundant on its surface. Thorium reactors also need salts
hydrogen from water. A suitable implementation for Mars consists to operate, but the amount needed would not be significant compared
of water in alkaline solution at 80ºC using a Ni anode that also to other ores. For resilience issues, it is highly desirable to develop the
acts as a catalyst. The containers in the reactor must be made with processes to enable nuclear power options on Mars as soon as possible.
corrosion-resistant materials (e.g. glass), and on Earth, the stacks As for the gases, the CU budget for building the iron and steel factories
need to be replaced only every 10-12 years of continuous operation. are included in the manufacturing infrastructure.
Water electrolysis is also used to store energy in fuel cells [20].
• Sabatier Reaction (Methanation of CO2) is used to obtain methane 8 - Manufacture
from CO2 and H2. An implementation consisting of the catalytic Given the range of products needed to run a complex system like a
methanation of CO2 seems the best option. In the most used form, City, a broad range of manufacturing capabilities will be required with
the reaction requires moderately high pressures (about 20 bars) and equivalence to many Earth heavy, medium, and light industries. A key
is exothermic so the excess heat needs to be removed. A careful context for developing an appropriate-scale manufacturing capability on
design could reuse the heat to assist a water electrolysis reactor or Mars in the long-term is that a capability does not have to be developed
heating of clays for water extraction. within an Earth-legacy context. Many of the present-day emerging Earth
manufacturing trends towards a sustainable and renewable manufacturing
In all the reactions involving carbon oxides, there is a risk of accumulation implementation are highly relevant to Mars, i.e. sustainability, circular
of pure carbon onto the catalysts (e.g. Boudouard reaction). Despite economies, life cycle analysis and embodied energy consideration. Other
being problematic in some cases, this process executed under controlled relevant emerging trends include the concept of Industry 4.0.
conditions enables the formation of pure graphite, which shall be used in A manufacturing capability on Mars is expected to exhibit the following
electrolytic smelting of specialty metals. generic features. Materials and manufacturing choices driven by
In both Sabatier reaction and RGWS, the goal is converting H in a readily minimizing energy usage, from a selection of raw and technical materials
usable form, and they both follow similar energetic efficiencies (200 GJ - i.e. minimize embodied energy - to manufacturing energy costs. To
further minimize energy usage, to embrace the circular economy concept
and have a high degree of recycling of technical materials at product
end-of-life. Also, to embrace many of the concepts of Industry 4.0 and
smart manufacturing and thus implement flexible, re-configurable,
robotic manufacturing to maximize the range of product outputs for a
minimized infrastructural and embodied energy cost. A product design
philosophy that incorporates a wide and unique set of Martian context
requirements including; using Martian relevant raw and technical
materials, different environmental requirements (e.g. reduced weight
/ gravity and hence load requirements, different external atmospheric
chemistry – very low O2 and H2O concentrations and hence materials
compatibility, lower average temperatures, etc.), designs to enable low-
energy end-of-life re-cycling, and optimized design for production with
Figure 20. Interior view of one type of Earthly-Green-Domes available manufacturing techniques.
11
Some examples and consequences of the preceding manufacturing For the current study, to estimate the required mass of expected
context follows. Wherever possible, products should try to exploit manufacturing infrastructure, a case study of an Earth automotive
minimally processed regolith as a manufacturing material due to low manufacturing facility/ factory was chosen [22] and scaled to a factory
embodied energy, e.g. sintering it at high temperatures (~1200°C) or lifetime of 50 years to give an estimated value of 0.05 tonnes of
used with a suitable and available low embodied energy binders such infrastructure required per tonne of “medium” industrial manufactured
as CaSO4·½H2O (Plaster of Paris) [21], or sulphur. As discussed earlier, product. For heavy industries, it was assumed the manufactured product
compared to Earth applications, iron-based alloys should be more widely mass throughput per unit mass of infrastructure would be higher
used compared to aluminium given the much higher energy costs. (guesstimate as a factor of 5 higher) giving a value of 0.01 tonnes of
Aluminium and other specialty metals should only be used where a full infrastructure required per tonne of “heavy” industrial product. For the
product life cycle analysis indicates this is the most energy-efficient embodied energy resulting from the manufacturing process only (i.e.
solution. A wide range of products will require access to organic carbon- not including the embodied energy resulting from the basic chemical
based materials. Such materials will be sourced ultimately from the processing of the material) and using the same case study, a value of 27
atmospheric carbon pool of Mars (CO2) and H2O and thermodynamically GJ/tonne of the manufactured product resulted.
requires a high energy input. Physical/chemical processing as well as
biotechnological (photosynthesis) approaches, are expected to be used, 9 - Energy
although the provision of suitable photosynthetic biological growth Energy is an essential “nutrient” to both keep the city alive and to
environments on Mars imparts a significantly higher embodied energy enable the city’s growth. As any other resource, it needs to be collected,
cost than the equivalent use of biology on the Earth. After the primary transformed, and stored. Given enough power, one can eventually
capture of organic carbon, further processing steps will produce a range reproduce any of the functions that we do on Earth. However, scaling the
of organic-based materials, including bulk polymers and functional energy production facilities creates a recurrence issue in the design. If we
materials. Given the future timescale for a Mars manufacturing need more power, more materials need to be extracted and manufactured
capability implementation, it is expected that current research trends to provide the power, which leads to even higher power needs. To address
in molecular electronics, efficient carbon capture and use, advanced this aspect, the strategy implemented consisted of using the requirements
biotechnology, advanced nanomaterials, etc., will have been matured and of the Life Support System (37kW per citizen) plus an allowance of
that they will offer optimized solutions for Martian use, such as organic 5kW per citizen (personal and non-production related services), and then
semiconductors, carbon nanotube-based electrical conductors, etc. adding power in 10 kW increments until enough energy was produced per
Overall, the manufacturing capability shall be driven by a “low-energy year to achieve the citizen production goal of 0.125 CU/yr. Fortunately,
economy” as well as waste or end-of-life products as a high-value the process converged for the three energy systems considered to a value
resource – i.e. any waste material that has a high embodied energy of around 110 kW per capita. This number is quite high (Earth power per
content. In this first iteration of the design, we applied some of these capita is between 5 and 10 kW per capita in developed countries), but
principles in obvious situations (replacing use of metals), but many other it also is unavoidable given the requirements of the life support system
situations (use of polymers in constructive elements) would require a (which Earth gives us almost for free), and the required development
much more in-depth analysis, which we leave to future studies. rate.
Figure 21. Nüwa. View of the cliff, including the Mesa, Wall, and Valley
12
which can be done on Earth in advance. Thorium reactors have been
a promising technology for some decades, and several countries with
abundant reserves of thorium (like India) keep developing promising
prototypes. Thorium reactors use molten salts in the reactor instead of
water, so it does not need to withstand the high pressures (and associated
safety measures) involved in the current uranium/plutonium-based
reactors, and its waste has shorter radioactive lifetimes. This makes the
reactor much lighter and smaller, which might lead to safer and higher
EROI reactors.
Given the uncertainties and to avoid projecting personal biases, we
conservatively assume an EROI of 5 for the three methods, keeping in
mind that the actual EROI of each technology needs to be measured in
Figure 22. General view of Abalos City operational conditions by the initial colony. The energy transformation
costs of materials that we use throughout the study are based on those
The chosen distribution of power in a hybrid system of Photovoltaics provided in De Castro et al. [23], with some overheads added to account
(PV), Concentrated Solar Power (CSP), and Nuclear is discussed in a for the extra energy needed to produce some of the input products. The
later section. For resilience and efficiency considerations, the three materials needed for the energy distribution grid were also derived from
technologies should be implemented, so there is always spare power to, the aforementioned reference. Due to space constraints in this document,
at least, run the life support system. In our solution, both the CSP and we have not explained in detail solutions for the storage of energy. In
Nuclear produce enough energy by themselves to run the LSS, so if one general, batteries are needed to store energy and react to quick changes in
fails, development stops, but people stay safe and alive. Any excess of demand. Instead of Li ion (which may be hard to find and process), these
energy should be stored chemically in (for example) H2 and O2, solid C, could be made using Zinc-air batteries, flow batteries, or fuel cells (water
and liquid fuels (e.g. methanol). electrolysis plants operated in reverse).
In terms of strategy, during phase-1 both high-performance PVs (thin
Concentrated Solar Power. Although the EROI values of CSP (between semiconductor substrate), and nuclear power solutions (only high-
4 and 15) for electric energy generation might not be as high as some tech elements of the core) shall be imported from Earth while starting
initial (naïve) estimates, relatively low tech is needed to make mirrors, mass production of Concentrated Solar Power solutions. In phase 2,
boilers, pipes, tanks, and pumps. Among the three more suitable energy the PV infrastructure can start growing if a solution is found for easy
solutions for Mars, CSP is the only one that can be built for sure with manufacturing of semiconductor (organic semiconductors, or simpler
in-situ resources only with current technologies. A heavy industry that processes to produce Solar panel grade Si), while reserves for nuclear
is designed to operate with CSP (e.g. processes that mostly require fuel ores on Mars are surveyed.
heat, such as glass, regolith sintering, or even metal casting) could save
large amounts of electric energy too. In this sense, our CSP solution 10 - The Development of a Martian Culture and Education
would consist of parabolic trough fields for electricity production, and Martian society must be fully supported by the concept of community.
Concentrated Solar Power furnaces in towers for industrial processing. Thus, education (formal and social) is designed to overcome the
We considered coupling solar concentrators to greenhouses directly. traditional duality of me (self) and them (community). Mars is a very
Although it initially seemed a good idea, not enough energy could be hostile planet, and when you are risking your life every single day, you
provided to make efficient use of the surface around the city, requiring learn to rely on the other people around you. Here, the African proverb
vast extensions of crops and mirrors. Although the trade-off needs to be that says “if you want to go quickly, go alone; if you want to go far, go
studied in more detail, for simplicity, we now assume that the energy together”, dramatically changes to “if you want to stay alone, stay on
needed to ‘feed’ the plants comes from electricity. Earth; if you want to come to Mars, join us”. Ultimately, no matter how
advanced the technology or the level of AI is, it is not enough if it fails to
Photovoltaics. We allocate a smaller fraction of power to PV because foster a healthy community. This is also embedded at the administration
- although this is a Mars tested technology - the in-situ construction of level where all citizens are considered shareholders of the city, which in
solar panels may prove challenging due to the difficulties in high-quality turn provides for all the basic needs. All the people are part of the city,
semiconductors. Even on Earth, silicon-based photovoltaics don’t seem and the city is everyone.
to have EROIs higher than 5.
Nuclear Power. Plants are an obvious choice, especially if the high-tech

components of the reactor cores can be shipped from Earth together with
the fissile fuel (e.g. solution based on the design by the company Terrestrial
Energy, adopted by the Mars Colony studies Star City and Menegroth
in Crossman 2020), at least during the first years (phase 1). Except for
the core, a Nuclear power plant is essentially a big mass of steel and
concrete, which can be locally sourced. It is unclear however, whether
current reactor designs shall be economically operable on Mars (aka,
they have EROI larger than 1). While there are very successful reactors
in military vessels, experimental devices in extreme environments such
as Antarctica have not been very successful. We speculate that the most
promising option would consist of developing thorium-based reactors, Figure 23. General view of Marineris City
13
Additionally, living on Mars will force a radical change in the way
of understanding the relationships between humans and their natural
environment. On the Earth, one can forget that the subjectivity of each
individual is intimately interconnected with the environment and the
social relations. Still, on Mars this relationship is evident in everything
that is done. People there do not adapt the environment to their comfort
but are forced to adapt themselves to the planet. And this must lead to
greater respect for what Mars offers, ensuring the sustainability of the
trio me-community-environment.
In this way, Martian society will evolve and differentiate from ours,
until it becomes a mirror in which to look at itself from Earth. It is
clear that Earth’s environmental problems are results of the evolution
of society in its economic, political, social, and educational aspects. Figure 25. Interior view of an Art Dome
Therefore, the circle could be closed by inheriting a social model based
on full integration in the community and on material and environmental how to learn new skills from available resources (books, digital world,
sustainability. mentors), and how to integrate different skill sets in teams to complete
The educational model shall fully embed Mars born children in this tasks. This kind of education is an important asset to both the city and
cultural mindset. In its practical implementation, the educational model is the pupils, given that the tasks and work distribution may be changing
organized in three stages: Early years, Intermediate years, and University. rapidly over time. As in the early ages, the teaching materials & practices
must be designed to abolish implicit gender/sexual orientation/cultural
Early Years. Mars immigrants are typically in their 30s, so many of them biases and toxic cultural heritages that go against the free development
may want to start families. Human procreation is also an essential function of the self. Embracing teamwork practices shall also be oriented towards
required for the long-term survival of Nüwa. Consequently, children’s promoting the sense of shared communal responsibility towards the
care is addressed by the community. Early childhood education consists others, and the common project that is Nüwa.
of social services for newborn to preschool age (i.e., up to 5 years old).
Early education programs will be founded by specialized methods such University (Mars Technical Universities, MTU). Due to the economic
as Montessori, Waldorf or Kirchner, which are committed to developing focus of the city towards development, the MTU (which would also
children physically, socially, emotionally, and cognitively. Universal include studies typically associated to professional and technical schools)
access to child care satisfies a dual function: it allows parents to keep shall be focused on preparing specialists to the most critical technical
engaged with their tasks, and it nurtures the spirit of shared communal and management tasks (e.g. it does not train miners, it trains mining
responsibility (collective education). In all the educational stages, there engineers, mechanical engineers and software developers to make and
will be a consistent and persistent commitment to co-education programs operate machines). An important aspect that will also be nurtured will
to abolish gender and diversity bias present on Earth [24,25]. be the Arts and a self-expression education. Arts will be a critical part
of Society on Mars, in order to develop its own cultural identity and
Intermediate Years. Adult personalities are forged during this period of common sense of purpose. Each Macro-Building includes Art-Domes
life. The educational program for children between 5 and 16 years old, to encourage and inspire the citizens of Nüwa and its sister cities. The
will follow the directives of the Incheon Declaration, which has been academic staff shall be composed by a full time teaching academics that
designed to satisfy the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development shall manage and organize the courses (30%), a small fraction of pure
(or the future version of it). In this sense, education must be accessible academics tasked with the development of innovation programs (20%),
for all, must have a global scope, and must train the future adults into and the rest shall be associated members with a high professional profile
operating in collaborative and inclusive environments. The curricula that are offered to spend 50% of their usual workload to teaching duties.
should be generalist in the sense of learning skills, and training in the Basic research is not a core activity at the MTU. In this aspect, the role of
usage & triage of information rather than mere acquisition of knowledge. the MTU is to provide access to Martian unique environments to scientists
All students need to learn how to both play leadership roles and how to from abroad, and formulate engineering and scientific challenges so they
become productive team members, as they will have to play both roles can be addressed by the much larger intellectual resources of Earth.
during their adult lives. Strong emphasis shall also be given in teaching A program of visiting scientists (for minimal time periods of 6 years)
from other locations of the solar system shall be implemented with co-
funding initiatives. All Mars citizens shall be able to apply for studies
at the MTU at any time (no age restriction). Apart from a multi-year
degree, the MTU shall prepare short term intensive programs (similar
to summer universities on Earth, but all year round) to foster interaction
among citizens of different sectors and encourage innovation. MTU
will also provide administrative support to entrepreneurs willing to start
business cases on Mars, which require considering technical aspects
more complex than those on Earth.
11 - Services & Recreation
11.1 Social Welfare Infrastructure

Figure 24. Interior view of the corridors at the Residential-Quarters Access to medical care is a fundamental right on Mars. As such, the
14
Early Years Schools. The number of enrolled children in early childhood
education programs in Europe is about half of those enrolled in primary
schools (Early Childhood Education and Care in Europe, ECECE).
Each urban center of 200k inhabitants shall offer around 3000 nursery
spots spread over ~40 nursery centers. Nurseries will be situated in well
Facilities inside the Macro-Buildings that are directly connected to
Earthly-Green-Domes.
Schools and Universities. According to 2017-2018 data, in the US,

with a population of 328.2 million people, there were a total of 130,930
schools, 87.498 were elementary schools, and 26,727 secondary schools
(National Center for Education Statistics, NCES). In a city of 200K, ~80
Figure 26. Interior view of a Green-Pavilion schools for both elementary and secondary will be built. Currently, there
are a total of 3,228, 2,596, and 2,725 universities in the USA, China,
health facilities are maintained by the city, and all citizens have free, and Europe, respectively (NCES) in a total population between the
equal access to them. A Personal Monitoring Device will also send three regions of 2,462.6 million people. Thus, for a Mars city of 200K
periodic data on basic vital information of each citizen to a centralized inhabitants, the equivalent of 0.35 large universities (10 000 x 0.35 =
computer, so urgent help can be sent when certain conditions are met 3500 student placements) are needed. Schools are integrated inside the
(pre-specified by the user, and/or automatically by the system as a Work-Quarters, inside the Macro-Buildings, and share the Facilities
function of the location). and Urban-Orchards with the offices and research hubs located in the
modules. Each Urban center includes three University campuses that are
Hospitals and Residences. Based on the Organization for Economic located at the Galleries and Urban-Pavilions in the Valley.
Co-operation and Development (OECD) data from a total of 42
countries worldwide, the number of beds per 1000 inhabitants ranges Recreation Facilities. engage citizens in physical activities such as
from 0.6 (India) to 12.5 (Japan). The mean of the number of beds for sports, games and fitness, social activities, camping, and arts & crafts
those 42 countries is 4.4 per 1000 inhabitants. It is estimated that for a activities. As described in the urban design, Nüwa has many volumes
200K inhabitant city a ~880 number of beds in hospitals are required. dedicated to leisure. In New York City there are a total of 1,700 parks
The number of beds available for people requiring long-term care in for 18 million citizens, corresponding to 18 large recreational parks for
institutions (other than hospitals), are 752.69 per 100K inhabitants in a population of 200k. These recreational facilities are distributed at the
EU member states based on data collected in 2014 (European Health Mesa inside the Galleries, Arcades, Tunnel-Parks, Green-Pavilions, and
Organization Gateway). Thus, for a 200k city, the total number of beds Urban-Pavilions. Additional smaller social areas are provided at the
required in residences is ~1500. Hospitals and residences are situated at Earthly-Green-Domes, in the Macro-Buildings, inside the cliff (Wall).
the Galleries and Urban-Pavilions at the Valley.
11.2 Ground Transport
Drugs and Biochemicals. Production of medicine and drugs is needed Intracity. The transportation in the vertical direction of the Wall (inside
to preserve the citizens in good health. To account for them in the CU the cliff) is carried out with elevators in the sky-lobbies and shafts. At
budgets, we estimate the amount required per person using Earth data. the base and top of the Wall, a system of light trains and buses is used to
Concerning analgesics, these can be classified into three types of groups: move in the longitudinal direction of the cliff. The underground spaces
non-opioids, and mild and strong opioids (World Health Organization’s, at the base of the Wall, adjacent to the Tunnel-Parks and the Arcades,
WHO) and their consumption is highly variable on Earth. In Mars, it is include the train stations that connect with the Space Shuttle Hub that, for
estimated that about ~40 DDD (Defined Daily Doses per 1000 inhabitants the case of Nüwa, is located inside the big crater in contact to the west
per day) such as paracetamol, ibuprofen or aspirin will be consumed [26]. side of the Mesa.
Opioids will also be produced, and it is estimated that the consumption All transportation inside the city happens within pressurized spaces
will range between 80-250 morphine milligram equivalents (MME) per and consists of electrically powered vehicles. To estimate the energy
capita [27]. and mass budget of the fleet of vehicles, we assume one electric bus/
The number of antibiotics consumed will range between 4 to 64 DDD wagon for every 400 inhabitants (a bit higher than Earth average). Out
(defined daily doses) per 1000 inhabitants per day, and the absolute
overall weight will vary from 1 tonne to 2225 tons (tn) per year [28].
For CU accountancy reasons, we estimated the amount of medicines
consumed over 20 years per average person. Assuming this, we added
0.5 tn of advanced medicine at an energy cost of 500 GJ/tn, and 1.5 tons
of basic medicine at 100 GJ/tn for basic medicines to each CU. Methanol,
ethanol, and hydrogen peroxide in solution with water shall be used as
the workhorse disinfectants in homes, public spaces and health care
facilities. A material budget account for all the disinfectants required by a
hospital bed is added to the CU budget at 0.8 tons of simple polymers and
organics. Both methanol and ethanol can be derived from bio-products
(e.g. sugar cane) or from chemical processes. Hydrogen peroxide can
be chemically produced easily from H2 and O2 using relatively simple
catalytic processes. Figure 27. Conceptual diagram of the tunnels at the Mesa, Cliff and Valley
15
11.4 Communications
Communication services shall ensure a constant link between different
parts of the city, between different cities on Mars and between Mars and
the Earth.
Intracity Communications. Broadband data will be disseminated via a

careful design of the artificial lighting inside the city following the Li-Fi
concept. For safety and need of redundancy, LiFi shall be complemented
by lower bandwidth radio-link Wi-Fi in all human dwelled spaces.
Intercity Communications. Initially, radio links shall be used between

cities, with repeaters installed every few tens of kilometers in high-
Figure 28. Interior view of the Train Transportation system inside Nüwa terrain locations. Eventually, fiber optic lines would complement the
system, providing high bandwidth communications, especially between
of dome operations shall be executed via pressurized rovers, which shall nearby cities.
all be equipped with enough pressure suits and backup air to sustain their They are not immediately implemented because, while they have the
inhabitants for at least 10 hours, even in case of full vehicle failure. Each advantage of being low power and low latency, their manufacture on
city also includes two large helicoidal ramps that connect the Mesa and Mars might require significant amounts of energy-intensive materials
Valley vertically and that are mainly used for vehicular logistics and (polymers, specialty glasses and semiconductors). For longer distances
during the construction/excavation of the “vertical city” inside the cliff. (connections with Abalos city near the pole), direct satellite links are
considered more efficient. This system is mainly supported by the
Intercity Transport. City to city transport is done with trains of buses/ Areostationary network of satellites.
wagons on paved roads. The roads shall be built using excess gravel and
sintered regolith (pavement layer) as the main materials. The travel speed Mars-Earth Communications. All cities on Mars are always linked
shall be of the order of 100 km/h. These buses are all-electric, they are with the antennas of the Earth’s Deep Space Network (DSN). To do this,
charged at the origin stations before departure, but they also have PV on two systems are used:
the roof for emergency backup power. All human transportation shall be
done in day time. All wagons have an extra cover of polymer to increase 1. Direct-to-Earth comms: The cities on Mars communicate directly with
protection against radiation coming from above, but shall otherwise have the DSN through Laser Band. This ensures a very reliable system, but
windows to enjoy the views. only when the city and the Earth are in view. The uplink and downlink
Each urban center will have a central receiving station for all intercity velocities can achieve 680 kbps and 44 Mbps, respectively.
transport, located at the Galleries that connect with the artificial 2.Relay comms: The Areostationary network satellites are used as a signal
mountain. As for the intercity transport, we assume one of such wagons relay, ensuring constant link with the DSN. In this case, a combination
for every 400 inhabitants should be enough to cover most transportation of UHF and X-band antennas are used to obtain uplink and downlink
demands. More advanced methods of transportation (maglev trains) may velocities of around 44 Mbps per satellite.
eventually develop between cities, but not during the core development
phase of the Martian infrastructure. 11.5 Farewell Facilities
Death is a necessary part of life on Mars. For efficiency and to avoid
11.3 Personal Monitoring and Digital Administration bio contaminating the Martian environment, corpses will be processed
All citizens must always wear a Personal Monitoring Device. This has (composted, or incinerated in a dedicated Solar Concentrator Tower), and
the function of: their biomass incorporated back into the system (small samples can be
• Activating the correct safety protocols in case of emergency kept by close-ones). Some of the Urban-Orchards and Earthly-Green-
• Monitor the health of the citizens and detect patterns of possible city Domes will be dedicated as a remembrance space for the departed ones.
wide-spread issues In terms of inheritance, part of the in micro and MSC will be passed to
• Localizing key citizen at any time (cases of extreme emergency) children, spouse or designated heir, and the rest will be returned to the
city.
The device may be physically embedded in the body or can be a wearable
piece (watch, bracelet, necklace, earring), and relies on the radio Wi-Fi
network. Very clear legislation shall exist in terms of how the personal
information gathered by the Personal Monitoring Device can be used.
Anonymization of the information and legislation shall be followed.
In addition to this, all citizens will be given a Portable City Terminal,
which shall feature all the common functions of a modern cell phone
device. Citizens keener on advanced technology can spend their micros
on more sophisticated hardware. The Portable City Terminal shall be
carried along to all public places, as it doubles as an ID system and as
a communication tool. All city administrative matters will be managed
through the PCT or using a computer. To account for all these gadgets
and computing needs of each citizen, a mass of 5 kg of electronics is
assumed per CU. Figure 29. Interior view of the Galleries connecting with the Space Shuttle Hub
16
12 - The Earth-Mars Transportation System 12.2 Earth-Mars Station
A robust and scalable Earth-Mars transportation system is vital to ensure To complement the Shuttle service, an Earth-Mars Station (EMS)
the success and sustainability of Nüwa and the other cities on the red will start operating from the year 2075, to be used as a large-capacity
planet. Once the first city of 1,000 inhabitants has settled, the landing transport system. The EMS is placed in a Cycler Orbit that periodically
of new people from Earth will grow exponentially. In addition, an moves between the Earth and Mars [29].
economy based on Mars-Earth relations and the exploitation of resources By the year 2100, the EMS must be able to carry up to 135,000 people
throughout the Solar System will begin to emerge. at its higher occupancy rate. The station can be a big S/C or an asteroid
placed at the Cycler Orbit.
Taking all this into account, the Earth-Mars transportation system main Schematics of the EMS architecture can be seen in Figure 31. The station
objectives are: 1) Allow the flow of passengers from Earth to Mars at orbits between the Earth and Mars, performing a fly-by around each
the right pace to meet the exponential demand of inhabitants (1,000 to
800,000 people from 2050 to 2100); 2) Allow the flow of passengers
from Mars to Earth; 3) Allow the flow of goods between Mars and Earth
(and vice versa), key to economic relations between the two planets; 4)
Operates as a transport hub between the inner and outer Solar System.
All these objectives shall be accomplished taking into account the
following top-level requirements for the Earth-Mars transportation
system: 1) Be manufactured mostly on Mars with ISRU technologies; 2)
Be managed and operated from Mars; 3) Work efficiently, requiring the
least amount of fuel and materials possible; 4) Be scalable and adaptable
to the needs imposed by the future space economy.
The optimized solution is based on two different systems working

together: a regular shuttle and a station periodically orbiting between the
Earth and Mars. This combination is able to adapt the overall system
to the demanding amount of people that need to be transported to Mars
between 2090 and 2100, taking advantage of shared components and
synergies between them.
12.1 Shuttle
A shuttle system is developed to transport people and cargo aboard a
reusable spacecraft (S/C) able to be launched and land both on Mars and
the Earth (see Shuttle architecture in Figure 30). The S/C is launched and Figure 30. Shuttle system architecture. Main material masses are estimated using Wertz et
al. (1992) [30]. S/C and booster images are based on Starship and Superheavy, from SpaceX
placed into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) using a reusable booster. Once in
LEO, it is refilled with liquid O2 (LOX) and methane (CH4). Then, a Trans
Mars Injection makes the S/C escape the Earth’s gravitational influence,
entering into an elliptical orbit around the Sun, directed towards Mars.
After an average time of 250 days of coasting, the S/C lands safely on the
red planet, using a heat shield and supersonic retropropulsion.
In Mars, ISRU technologies allow the extraction of O2 and CH4 from
atmospheric CO2 and water, using the Sabatier Process (see Section 7 -
Chemical Transformation). Now, departing from the red planet is easier,
thanks to its lower gravity. Therefore, the shuttle S/C does not need a
booster and can go all the way from the Mars surface to the Earth surface
by itself (direct ascent architecture).
The shuttles will depart from the Earth and Mars when the relative
position of both planets allow for minimum fuel requirements. These
launch windows open approximately every 26 months and last between
one and three months. For example, a window to travel from the Earth to
Mars opens the 15th of September 2054 and closes after 28 days, the 13th
of October 2054. The next window opens the 6th of September 2056 and
closes after 65 days, the 10th of November 2056, and so on.
Earth and Mars launch windows are crucial to optimize the amount of
S/C and boosters to assure the right flow of people and cargo between
the two planets. The study of the interplanetary trajectories allows
obtaining a set of analytical results to analyze the mission feasibility in
terms of propulsive requirements. The Earth-Mars transportation system
optimization finally results in a total of 151 units of Shuttle_1 (200 PAX)
and 200 units of Shuttle_2 (500 PAX) (see Figure 30), over the 50-year Figure 31. EMS system architecture. Main material masses are estimated using Wertz et al.
period. (1992) [30]. S/C and booster images are based on Starship and Superheavy, from SpaceX
17
planet every time it reaches them. This is very convenient since almost
no fuel is needed to keep such a station on its path. However, passengers
and cargo need to be moved from the surface of the planets to the station
and back. For this, dedicated S/C and boosters are used. These S/C and
boosters are new versions of Shuttle_2, adapted with fewer thrusters,
smaller fuel tanks, and a less demanding Life Support System. Also,
more than one S/C shall be able to dock with the station simultaneously,
to facilitate the boarding of all passengers during the 70 – 100 minutes
fly-by. All in all, a total of 467 S/C and boosters are needed to feed the
station between 2075 and 2100.
12.3 Materials
Figures 30 and 31 include the total mass of the main materials needed for Figure 32. Level 1 channel distribution shown as the overarching framework within the entire city.
Significant role of Stakeholder 1 shown as the major distributor and further layering of level 2 and 3
the Shuttle system and EMS, respectively. Taking into account that the channels within the overall ecosystem
S/C and boosters operating all their lifetime between the Earth surface
and LEO are built on the Earth, the total materials (kg) needed to fabricate
all the elements of the transportation system on Mars are: stainless steel 14 - The Emergence of the City
1.2·108; carbon fiber composite 3.1·108; LOX 2.2·109; methane 6.1·108. A pictorial representation of the budget per CU is shown in Figure
33. Materials have been consolidated into categories to aid in the
13 - Distribution of Services visualization. As a reminder, a CU (or City Unit) is the material, energy
Since the city’s tunnel system provides access and reaches to all parts of and resource budget required to add one human to the city. The budget
the city, it makes it sensible to also integrate its services within them. As has been prepared consolidating all the information from all the solutions
a default, and as an overarching framework within the entire city, a Level developed in the previous sections in a rather extensive spreadsheet.
1 channel for distribution of services is proposed. Here it is assumed Some iterations were needed to converge the solution due to recurrent
that the distributor plays a significant role as it manages the supply and dependencies mostly caused by the energy production infrastructure. As
delivery of building services, in the same way it manages the logistical seen in Fig. 33, the major contributors to the budgets are the construction
activities related to the distribution of goods and passengers within the of human spaces, greenhouses, and the energy and manufacturing
transportation network. infrastructures. The bottom left of the figure also shows the bulk
While this creates a scenario where the entire infrastructure is wholly amount of minerals and gases that need to be ingested to the system.
managed by a single stakeholder, it reduces system-wide operational The manufacturing energy block corresponds to the energy required to
risk. This provides an opportunity for further layering of Level 2 and 3 manipulate products and transform them in user-ready goods (see Section
channels within the overall ecosystem. 8- Manufacture). Important observations to be made:
Figure 33. Left Panel. Mass, energy, power and raw material budgets per City Unit (CU). Right Panel. Main physical assets per citizen
18
• Gravels are needed in large amounts, but they are cheap in terms of
energy (almost for free from the excavation of tunnels, and clay mining)
• Digging activities such as tunneling and surface mining are not as
energy intensive as they may initially seem. Deploying machines with
digging capabilities shall be a priority in the early development phases.
• We based our material estimates on Earth’s constructive style. This
results in the use of significant quantities of polymers (aka plastics).
Most of the polymers do not go to domes, but into classic construction
elements. Reduction in usage of polymers (and also steel) would
propagate strongly and reduce the CU costs. For example, reducing the
amount of polymers would also remove most of the water budget, as all
the hydrogen atoms incorporated in organic molecules originate from it.
One may think that the CU budget is too large, but this shall be compared Figure 34. Aerial view of the access to Nüwa via the valley floor
to the equivalent one on Earth. In developed countries, the number of
minerals mined per person/yr is about 10 tn. If we multiply this by 70 CONCLUDING REMARKS
years of life, this leads to 700 tons of mineral, which is very consistent
with our CU budget estimate, especially if we consider that most of the This design proposal was initiated and promoted by SONet (the
Martian digging comes from clays to produce water (which comes for Sustainable Off-world Network), which is a community of mainly
free on Earth). European professionals interested in multidisciplinary approaches
In summary, despite the average power requirement is high, the result to sustainable exploration of space. For a while, we have been asking
indicates that with clever implementation of current technology and ourselves the question “what would it take for an off-world infrastructure
some more refinements in the design, the implementation of the Nüwa to be able to sustain its own growth”?
self-sustained growth concept would be viable on Mars.
The Mars Society competition gave us the chance to focus on a well
15 - Operating the City, Artificial Intelligence and the Role of defined design exercise. After several brainstorming sessions, we
Innovation established a simple development model, that pointed to a solution
Considering that Nüwa needs 117 kW per inhabitant compared to the based on exponential growth and three phases. We then summarized the
11 kW used by humans on Earth developed countries, a Mars citizen functions of the city, and proposed technical and urban design solutions
would have about ten times higher workloads than Earth ones. This that should address all of them. More than twenty five people participated
shall be mitigated by standardization, automation, and the use Artificial in the discussion sessions and contributed to a first 100+ pages document,
intelligence (AI). We are still very Earth bound to the methods that we which has been distilled in this report. Besides infrastructure, the city
can think about. Practical experience and locally-driven innovation shall also needs citizens to grow. The socio-cultural aspects of the design
both improve productivity and produce surpluses fast. naturally came into play when building a compelling case to attract
Currently AI designers have the challenging task of getting AI agents the future martians.
to work effectively in environments not originally built with them in
mind. However, if this is taken into account at design level, then the We made no effort in assessing the cost of the development in Earth
sophistication of their reasoning can be greatly reduced, e.g. limiting currency, except for the cost to transport people. This was intentional. Of
locomotion to tracks, having to distinguish only a few types of clearly course, this leaves open the small issue of funding for the initial colony.
marked object types, not requiring ability to circumnavigate unexpected After making various assessments, we concluded that - as of today - there
objects (possibly humans). Consider the ensemble of robotic arms and is no clear Earthbound business case for a colony on Mars that does
conveyor belts used in fabrication factories - these don’t require AI. AI not rely on wildly uncertain assumptions and correspondingly high risk.
shall also be used in services and digital administration tasks if possible.
However, any automated decision by AI that affects the citizens will be Anyone would agree that economic returns are bound to happen when
auditable and the proper policy making will be in place to ensure that AI an economic activity enters exponential growth. If our self-sustainable
design is unbiased with regards to the values of Nüwa, such as equality development concept could be demonstrated (even on Earth), this
among the members of the Settlement. would provide incentive for governments and the private sector alike.
After analysis, design changes, and interactions, we conclude that, in
principle, the Nüwa concept could become a reality; but additional
design work is still needed.
Building a sustainable and socially cohesive society has strong synergies

with solutions to Earth’s problems, so solutions to both challenges can be
worked out together. It is clear to all of us that a highly multidisciplinary
effort would be needed to move this initial sketch into something
more tangible. In future iterations, we hope to engage a more diverse
community and this design concept as a starting point.
In the meantime, we hope to meet again soon...

“...I’ll become part of Mars; I will dissolve into Nüwa, and join all those
Figure 35. Interior view of a facility in a Macro-Building overviewing a Martian-Green-Dome that give life to it. And we will become Nüwa, forever…”
19
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[2] Lambert, J. G. et al., “Energy, EROI and quality of life,” Energy Policy, 64: 153-167, 2014. Lordos); and Project Menegroth by W. Stine.
[3] Boyko, C. T. et al., “Benchmarking sustainability in cities: The role of indicators and future
scenarios,” Global Environmental Change, 22: 245-254, 2012.
[4] Ehlmann, B. L. et al., “Mineralogy of the Martian surface,” Annual Review of Earth and Team
Planetary Science, 42: 291–315, 2014.
[5] Brothers,T. C. et al., “Abalos Mensa, Planum Boreum, Mars: a constructional, aeolian AUTHORS:
history derived from radar and optical stratigraphy, reinforced by atmospheric modeling,”
43rd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, 1452, 2012. Project Coordination, Economic model & High-level concepts: Guillem
[6] Milliken, R. E. et al., “Langevin, Hydration state of the Martian surface as seen by Mars Anglada-Escudé, Ph.D.; RyC fellow in Astrophysics; Institut for Space Science/
Express OMEGA: 2. H2O content of the surface,” J. of Geo. Research Planets, 112, 2007. CSIC & Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (EU)
[7] Christensen, P. R. et al., “Global mapping of Martian hematite mineral deposits: Remnants
of water-driven processes on early Mars,” J. of Geophysical Research, 106: 873–23, 2001. Co-coordination. Space, Earth-Mars transportation & Socio-economics:
[8] Stern, J. C. et al., “Evidence for indigenous nitrogen in sedimentary and aeolian deposits Miquel Sureda; Space Science and Technology Research Group, Universitat
from the Curiosity rover investigations at Gale crater, Mars,” Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, Politècnica de Catalunya & Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (EU)
112:4245–4250, 2015.
[9] Anderson, M. S. et al., “Life support baseline values and assumptions document,” 2018. Life Support, Biosystems & Human factors: Gisela Detrell, Ph.D; Institute for
[10] Berkovich, Y. A., et al. “Vegetable production facility as a part of a closed LSS in a Space Systems, Universität Stuttgart (EU)
Russian Martian space flight scenario,” Advances in space research, 44.2: 170-176, 2009.
[11] Boscheri, G., et al. “The MELiSSA GreenMOSS Preliminary Design Study: A Green- Design. Architecture & Urbanism:
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[12] Cannon, K. M., et al. “Feeding 1M people on Mars,” New Space, 7.4: 245-254, 2019.
[13] Detrell, G., et al. “Microalgae for combined air revitalization and biomass production Preliminary Analysis & Urban Configuration: Alfredo Muñoz (USA); Owen
for space applications,” in From Biofiltration to Promising Options in Gaseous Fluxes Bio- Hughes Pearce (UK)
treatment, Elsevier.
[14] Dobermann, D., et al. “Opportunities and hurdles of edible insects for food and feed,” Detailed Architecture & Urban Design: Alfredo Muñoz (USA); Gonzalo
Nutrition Bulletin, 42.4: 293-308, 2017. Rojas (Argentina); Engeland Apostol (UK); Sebastián Rodríguez (Argentina);
[15] Duatis, J., et al. “Preliminary Regenerative Life Support System Design for a Moon Verónica Florido (UK)
Base,” 40th International Conference on Environmental Systems, 2010.
[16] Hanboonsong, Y., et al. “Six-legged livestock: edible insect farming, collection and mar- Identity & Graphic Design: Verónica Florido (UK); Engeland Apostol (UK)
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[17] Wheeler, R. M., et al. “Crop production for advanced life support systems-observations Mars Materials & Location: Ignasi Casanova, Ph.D.; Prof. Civil and
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[18] Zeidler, C., et al. “Greenhouse module for space system: A lunar greenhouse design,” Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (EU)
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[24] Tyack, D., et al. “Learning together: A history of coeducation in American public schools” Biology, Institut de Ciències del Mar/CSIC, (EU)
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[26] Hider-Mlynarz, K., et al. “Trends in Analgesic Consumption in France Over the Last 10
Years and Comparison of Patterns Across Europe,” British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, CONTRIBUTORS:
84: 1324-1334, 2018. Jordi Miralda Escudé (ICREA Prof. in Astrophysics - Ground Transport, UB,
[27] Scholten, et al., 2019. “Quantifying the Adequacy of Opioid Analgesic Consumption EU); Rafael Harillo Gomez-Pastrana (Lawyer, - Political Organization & Space
Globally: An Updated Method and Early Findings,” AJPH PAIN MANAGEMENT, 109, law, EU); Lluis Soler (Ph.D. in Chemistry - Chemical processes, UPC, EU);
2019. Paula Betriu (Topographical analysis, - UPC, EU); Uygar Atalay (Location,
[28] Guven, G. S. et al., “Principles of good use of antibiotics in hospitals,” Journal of Hospi- temperature & Radiation analysis, UPC, EU); Pau Cardona (Earth-Mars
tal Infection, 53(2): 91-96, 2003. Transportation, UPC, EU); Oscar Macia (Earth-Mars Transportation, UPC, EU);
[29] Byrnes, D. V. et al., “Cycler orbit between Earth and Mars,” Journal of Spacecraft and Eric Fimbinger (Resource Extraction & Conveyance, Montanuniversität Leoben,
Rockets, 30(3), 1993. EU); Stephanie Hensley (Art Strategy in Mars, USA); Carlos Sierra (Electronic
[30] Wertz, J. R. et al., Space Mission Analysis and Design, Space Technology Library, 1992. Engineering, ICE/CSIC, EU); Elena Montero (Psychologist, EU); Robert Myhill
Many ideas developed were inspired by solutions presented in Mars Colonies, Plans for (Mars science – U. Bristol, UK); Rory Beard (Artificial Intelligence, UK)
June 2020
20
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18
Drawings
Attached in PDF format (А4) in the assignment folder.
Drawing 1. Cliff section. Scale 1:1000
Drawing 2. Macro-Building quarters. Scale 1:500

MESA
sky lobby Ø15m
200
CLIFF
200
connection between
high speed vertical
circulations Ø15m
200
VALLEY
100
access to valley
scale 1:1000
housing and work green buffer
quarters
10
scale 1:500

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History of Architecture assignment

Project: NÜWA CITY

by ABIBOO Studio and SONet

Location: Tempe Mensa, Mars

Student: Nikolai Abramov

Class: Architectural Engineering, Politecnico di Milano

Submission date: December 12, 2021

Brief Description of the Project

Location and Nearby Resources

The "Macro-buildings", with a total volume of 125,000,000 m3 per city, are

The Macro-Buildings are linked with High-Speed Elevator Systems, similar

Hybrid energy system of Photovoltaics (PV), Concentrated Solar Power

City Communal Areas

Humans are social beings, so providing spaces for social gatherings is

Life support system

In the living compartments CO2 is collected, together with water, through

Chapters of book on the project

Articles on the project

Guillem Anglada-Escudé et al., “The Nüwa Concept. A development model for a

Gisela Detrell et al., “Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars - development

Online articles on the project

Movies on the project

Scenit, “Nüwa, a city on Mars | Presentation - The Sustainable Offworld Network”

Images of the project

Attached in PDF format in the assignment folder.

Gisela Detrell et al., “Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars - development

Guillem Anglada-Escudé et al., “The Nüwa Concept. A development model for a

Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars - development concept, urban

Conference Paper · July 2021

Gisela Detrell Alfredo Munoz

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Miquel Banchs-Piqué Guillem Anglada-Escudé

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Planets orbiting M dwarfs View project

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Nüwa, a self-sustainable city state on Mars –

Guillem Anglada 4,5

Copyright © 2021 SONet

II. The Nüwa concept

A. Constrains and assumptions

International Conference on Environmental Systems

C. Construction inside the cliffs of Mars

International Conference on Environmental Systems

D. Location – Multiple cities concept

III. Development concept – sustainable growth

International Conference on Environmental Systems

B. Resources from Mars

International Conference on Environmental Systems

Raw material Tons/CU

IV. Urban planning

International Conference on Environmental Systems

International Conference on Environmental Systems

B. The mesa and the valley

C. The activities and built areas

International Conference on Environmental Systems

V. Life Support System

A. Life Support requirements

B. Life Support concept

Figure 6. Nüwa's Life Support System concept. Figure 7. Agricultural modules.

International Conference on Environmental Systems

C. Life Support integration

International Conference on Environmental Systems

International Conference on Environmental Systems