Evolving Asteroid Starship is a multidisciplinary cocreated research project investigating the possibility of utilizing an interstellar asteroid for future human exploration and colonization led by Angelo Vermeulen.
This page represents my personal contribution only, the module address assignment algorithm, a tiny fraction of this extensive co-creating project of students, researchers, and artists. The C# script can be found in my GitHub repository.
Summary
A complex algorithm taking into account various flavors of lifeforms continuously produces a virtual array of required modules in order to grow, adapt and sustain a human colony living in the ‘shadow’ cone of an interstellar asteroid.
A second algorithm is fed by this data and assigns a valid address in physical space to each newly produced module according to positioning rules. The starship’s self-replicating architecture is in continuous flux as growth and recycling happen within different levels of the ecosystem. All modules have the same exterior proportions of a truncated octahedron, however, each module will be assigned one of the nine different functionalities at its core to be part of a regenerative ecosystem.
Module Types
- Collision shielding
- Regenerative life support
- Habitation
- Radiation shielding
- Mining
- Processing
- Manufacturing
- Ore storage
- Refined materials storage
At the start of the assignment, I was searching for a platform to write the module assignment algorithm. Initially, Processing (Java) was chosen for quick prototyping and form exploration and this really helped me gain ideas about how to assign valid module addresses inside a virtual space. However, we opted to build the visualization model with Unity3d/C# for render and media purposes.
The following images offer a first impression of the Module Assignment application in Unity3d. Assuming a spherical form (which simplifies computational work), modules of different purposes are assigned an address built behind the asteroid.
Initial prototyping in Processing for form visualization:
Development in Unity3d:
Mineable addresses and mining module movement toward the asteroid core:
Module Address Algorithm schematic
Artist impression 3D media render.
More information about Evolving Asteroid Starship can be found on the SEADS website.
