An Architect in a World Where Apples Do Not Fall (February 1, 1977)

7/27/2019 An Architect in a World Where Apples Do Not Fall (February 1, 1977)

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i ItNASA T_CHNICAL TRANSLATION NASA TT F-17515

AN ARCHITECT IN A WORLD WHERE APPLESDO NOT FALL

Yaroslav Golovanov

(NAS&-II-_-t_515) Ai, _._.hlI_Ci -.N _ ,05it _77-|71i7H_._ A_iaS [C hcf _il (iransemantic_,inc., _a_hlngtcu, i.C.) z& _ hC .402/A_ _CI

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Translation of "ARKHITEKTOR V MIRE,GDE YABLOKI NE PADAYUT", Novvy Mir,

November 1976, pp. 212-226

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATIONWASHINGTON, D.C. 20546 FEBRUARY 1977


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1_d._ _&_d, "AN ARCHITECT IN A WORLD S.R_,_ O.,oWHERE APPLES DO NOT FALL" (Spacecraft February 1977 , ,Habitability Design) _ 6. P_ _e_i,oh, .do

n7. A,,&e41d " " 8. P.,,i_e O_.,,,o,.,R._,ISo.Yaroslav Golovanov I0. _r,d,U._os..

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National Aeronautics and Space Adminis-tration,' Washington, D.C. 20546 I_._,_eAe_rC_.

15. _...,_ Notes bTranslation of "ARKHITEKTOR V MIRE, GDE YABLOKI NE PADAYUT",

"No_ir, November 1976, pp. 212-226

16._,,,.,, T_e author offers some thoughts on. the problems facingarchitects in the design and construction of living quarters offuture habitats in space without gravitation. He recognizes thefact that _uch constructions can be fully useful only if ad-vances-in biomedical sciences will'_etermine the feasibility of(or find the means for) long-term survival in weightlessness.He urges'full comprehension of the overwhelming influence ofgravitation on.the.constructiun of bur houses, features of furn-ishings, and the livfng space itself, which is reduced to hori-zontal surfaces. The architecture of weightlessness will notk_ow _he size and shape restrictions, and _he living space it-s41f will be truly tridimensionally functional. It Ss the prob-lem of the architect to organize this space_ and his main dif-ficulty may be in the capacity of liberating himself fromhabitual "two-dimensional" thinking The article is accompaniecby favorable comments from cosmonaut Alexey Yeliseyev, Dr. of

Tech. Sciences and Twice Hero of the USSR, and a prominent arth_ :ect." 17. KeyWerd,Selecte4yAuthor(s)) 18. DistriCt|onStet,ment

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AN ARCHITECTIN A WORLDWHERE APPLESDO NOT FALLYaroslav Golovanov

The historyof the developmentof sciencein recentdecadesis /212"fullof numerousexamplesas to how achievementsin one fieldof know-ledgehave openednew horizonsin anotherfieldseeminglyunrelatedin any way to the first.The studyof radioactivity,n particular,has had the resultthatarcheologistsand paleontologistsave beenable to makemore accuratechronologicaldeterminationsf theirfindings. Successin computertechnologyhas permittedpsychologistsnd linguiststo conductresearchof whichthey couldnot evendream previously.I repeatthat thereareverymany examples,and I would liketo add one more lineto this longlist. To be more precise,I do not wish to add, but merelyto directattentionto the factthatthis linemay be addedin the verynearestfuture.It is quiteprobablethat the solutionof certainmedicalandphysiologicalproblemscan radicallychangeour conceptionsof architec-turalpotentials.SinceI cannotconsidermyselfa specialisteitherinthe fieldof medicineor architecture,I ask thatyou examineall thatI havewritten,only remainingwithinthe frameworkof this question.I am arguingnothingand do not even invitean argument,sinceI am notreadyfor an argumentmyself,butmerelysuggestmaterialfor thought.

SERPENTAND CALIPERSThe launchingof the firstartificialEarthsatellitein historywasactuallya purelyengineeringproblem,althoughan exceptionallycomplexone. Afterall,the pFincipleitselfof rocketflightin spacehad beenscientificallyoundedmany yearspriorto the event. Even curiousschool-childrenknewwhat to do in orderto fly in space. Anothermatterindeedwas thatfew had any ideaof how to do it. The progressof Sovietscienceon thewhole,innovativework-Tnthe fieldof rocketenginedesign,means

of automationand control,high-speedaerodynamicsand, finally,rocketdesignitselfandthe overallhigh levelof technologymade it possibleto openthe spaceage on October4, 1957.tlannedlight in space has increasedmany timesthe number

of engineeringproblems. I shallnameonly two problems,each of whosesolutionrequiredthe effortsof many researchgroups. The firstwas thecreationof a reliablelife-supportsystemthat couldguaranteean activelifefor an astronautduringall portionsof the flight. The secondwasto developa descentin denseatmosphericlayersat velocitiesgreatlyexceedingthe speedof sound, The historyof the solutionof thesetwoproblemsaloneis a veryinterestingscientificepic.: But the flightof Yuriy Gagarincouldin no way be considereda purelyengineeringproblem. Afterall, a very simpleand yet a verydifficultquestionhad to be answeredbeforesendinga man intospace:isn'tspace

I *Numbersin the marginindicatepaginationin the foreigntext.ii l


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iharmfulto man's physicalnature? Food,water,freshair, heat,normalbarometricpressure--everythingf whichour physiologicalell-beingon /213Earth is made up is providedpreciselyby technology.But thismost im-portantquestionwas no longerone for engineers. Physicians,physiol-ogists,specialistsin aviationmedicine,all thosewho had createdtheyoung branchof thatmost ancienttree--spacemedicine--hadto answerthisquestion. And theyanswered:spaceis not harmful. They had faithin theirhypothesesand experiments.They answeredfor mankind. Theyaskedonly thatman be stronger--onecouldunderstandthem.

I do not want in any way to belittleall thesuccessof engineeringspacethought. It is clearto everyonethat, let us say,the "Vostok,""Soyuz,"and "Salyut"are notsimplydifferentspacecraft,but ratherspacecraftof differentmaehine generationsThe factthatthe orbitalstationsof the futureand mannedinterplanetarypacecraftwill requireof theircreatorsevenbolder,more intelligentand refinedtechnicalsolutionsis evident Not so longago duringa meetingwith studentsattheMoscowPhysicsand TechnicalInstitute,osmonautNikolayRukavishnikov,answeringa questionon the complexitiesof a hypotheticalMartianexped-ition,exclaimed:"Showme the design engineerwho will givea guaranteethathis instrumentwon't breakdowna singletimeduringthreeyearsof constantoperationt"

Of course,all the difficultiesare not exhaustedonlyby the re-quirementsof reliability.Theirnumberis great. Why do certainspec-ialistsin the fieldof rocketryneverthelessbelievethatmaintainingman'sfurtherpenetrationintospacewill not be complexitiesof engin-eeringproblems? Their arguments are quiteconvincing.In principletheysay that todaythereare no unsolvableengineering

problemsthatwouldhinderflightto Mars,forexample Draftprojectsof a similarnatureexist,and thereis nothingfantastic,or fundamen-tallyimpossiblein them. Mannedflightto Mars froman engineer'spointof viewis todaya quantitativeproblemratherthana qualitativeone,which it was for F.Tsander,let us say.More complexthanthe engineeringproblemsis the socioeconomicfac-tor. The tensionin politicallife,the arms race,and obstaclesin thepathof peacefulscientificcooperationhave hinderedand certainlydoand will hinderthe progressof astronauticsMeanwhile,futuremannedflightto otherplanetsis now beingpicturedmoreand more frequentlynotas the pointof any singlenationalspaceprogram,but ratheras theresultof scientificcooperationbetweendifferentcountries. The impas-

sivecalculationsof economistsprovethis. Whereasthe mostcostlytechnicalundertakingin all the historyof man--theApolloprogram--was estimatedat 25 billiondollars,thenmannedflightto Mars is roughlyestimatedat lO0 billiondollars. It is todaydifficultto conceiveofa nationthatcouldaffordsuch expensesevenfor the sakeof the gloryof becomingthe homelandof the pioneersof Mars. In 1973 in Pasadenaat theJet PropulsionLaboratoryof theCaliforniaInstituteof Technology,i Americanengineersintalkswith Sovietscientificjournalistssaid: "Well,i of coursewe'llfly to Mars together We can't striveall by_ ottrselves#i the undertakingwill be too costly.... ")

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I think there is no sense in pausing longer on the socioeconomicfactors influencing the further progress of mannedspace flight. Every-thing there is clear or, to oe more precise, there are no debatableissues with you: the policy of peace and detente is an indispensablecondition for international cooperation in space.

Now I would like to name the main factor capable in our currentunderstanding (this stipulation is obligatory) of retarding the processof man's penetration into space. I am speaking of the one unsolvedproblem of space medicine or, to be more precise, the regretful limita-tion of that field in which certain laws developed by it, conclusionsand reconwnendations have indisputable force.In the numbered years of its existence space medicine has achievedextraordinary success. However, as frequently occurs in the strugglesof any young science with the unknown, two new heads have arisen in

place of each one that has been cut off. One such head was cut off longago, but the neck proved devilishly muscular--this is the problem ofweightlessness.My task does not include even a rapid review of the works devoted /214to a revelation of the secrets of the complex effect of weightlessnesson human activity. I refer those interested to the outstanding popularpublications of the correspondent member of the USSRAcademy of Sciences,O. Gazenko, and other specialists. Yes, a great many such specialistsare already known. Nevertheless, not a single specialist will takeupon himself the risk of stating: "Once man lives for two or three monthsin weightlessness, this means he can live for a year, nothing will happento him." Will or will not something happen? What can happen and when?

How can unpleasantness be avoided? These are the main questions aroundwhich discussion revolves at all congresses, conferences and symposiumswhere specialists on space medicine meet.Of course, the flights of the "Salyr'" and "Skylab" have pushed thetemporary boundaries of existence in space to two or three months, butthey did not solve the mysteries of weightlessness. The most carefulspecialists warn of possible and difficult to predict changes at thecell level that can arise in tissue under the effect of long weightless-ness.Optimists, on the other hand, set their hopes on the unusual flex-ibility of the human organism and its amazing adaptability to the mostimprobable conditions. They hope that a scientifically founded methodof physical exercise and further success in medicine will substantiallyincrease the permissible period of stay in weightlessness. But even the

optimists today will not write you a ticket to space either for threeyears or for one year, nor even for half a year. Their scientific con-science will not permit them to do this: they assume, but they don't know.

Lieutenant General of Aviation, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, pilotand cosmonaut of the USSR V. Shatalov in one of his recent articles acknow-i ledges: "The question regarding the maximum period that man can stay under

conditions of weightlessness remains very important for astronautics.One must obviously agree with the fact that such periods nevertheless

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exist. It is difficultto counton the factthatman,havinglefttheEarth,couldremainin spaceforan indeterminatetime. But we do notas yet knowtheseperiods."We are probablyfacedwith the casewhen discussionson Earthcannothelp. It wouldappearthat the say restswith "hismajesty'sExperiment."And obviouslythatexperimentor, to be moreprecise,a seriesof suchexperiments,must standin a lineof themosturgentscientificmatters.Because,not havingguessedthemysteriesof weightlessness,e cannotbeginto solvepurelyengineeringproblemsin the future. Do you recallthe old anecdoteabouthow the animalsdecidedwhat type of bridgetobuild acrossthe river? The ass said, "Firstof all we have to decidehow we'llbuildit: alongor acrossthe river?" So untilwe learnhowlongman can remainin weightlessnesswithoutimpairinghis health,wewillnot be ableto decidehow to buildthe bridgeto the banksof outerspace:alongor across?Imaginefor a momentthatas a resultof researchspacedoctorshaveestablishedthe following:despiteall possiblecontrivances,theycannotexpandthe periodthatman can remainin weightlessnessy more thanupto one year. This immediatelydeterminesthemaximumperiodthat crewshiftscan remainon orbitalstations. It is preciselythis time thatmust be takenintoaccountwhen determiningthe operationalresourcesoftheirscientificequipment.As far as the problemof long flightsinspace,interplanetarylights,are concerned,thisperiodessentiallydictateseverythingto the engineers. It is clear thatin order to per-formthe programcountedon for one year, a spacecraftdoes not needdevicescreatingartificialgravitation,but in a spacecraftdesigned,letus say,to deliveran expeditionto Jupiter'ssatellites,suchadeviceis necessary.Artificialgravityand theadditionalenergycon-

sumptionassociatedwith it inavoidablyentailthe complicationand weightingdownof all the structuralelements. The lastconditionrequiresmorepowerfulrocketengines,and aboveall else the creationof new rockets.New,more powerfulrockets,meaninglargerrockets,in turnresultin theneed to createnew,even huger (andmore expensive)aunchingcomplexes.To put it succinctly,the costsand expendituresrequiredto createthesystemsthemselveswith artificialgravitationamountto onlya smallper-centageof the totalconceivablecostsand expenditurescausedby the nec-essityto solvethisproblem. Naturally,thishuge amountof work iscapableof slowingdown the rateof developmentof astronautics.Thus,in general,onlyone particularproblemof spacemedicineis /21__.stronglylinkedwiththe huge numberof purelyengineeringproblems. As

you see,thewise serpent--theemblemof physicians--isodaynot onlybentover the staff,but its endsare also closelyentwinedaroundtheengineer'scalipers.LIFEON THE CEILING

Despitethe factthatValeriyBykovskiyflew on a spaceshipfor almostfive daysand it was accuratelywrittenin the pressthat he "livedinspace,"the "Vostok"was neverthelessa craft for flyingand not for liv-ing. In a passengerplaneyou and I eat,drinkand sleep,but we are stillflyingand not livingthere. On the "Soyuz-9"A. Nikolayevand V. Sevast'-


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yanovdid live:thetwo spacecraftcompartmentscreateda certainillus-ion of an apartment.And the Salyutorbitalstationis simplya spacehouse. This progressin spacetechnologyhasmst oftenbeen notedinpurelyquantitativeterms--dataare c_pared on weightand volume,butit was forgottenthatextremelyimportantqualitativechangeswere afterall beingmade: in tenyears Sovietspacetechnology,refiningitselfindifferentareas,has converteda transportationehicleintohousing.Centurieswouldbe requiredfor a similarconversionin shipbuilding,letus say.The law of the developmentof scienceand technologyis one fromthesimpleto the complex. It is preciselyin thismannerthatwe haveobtainedthemodernelectriclight,the auto,bile,and the nuclearparticleacceler-ator. In thissensethe Vostokwas a uniquecreation:no one,nowhere,atno ti_ had builtspacecraft.The draftsketchesof Kibalchich,Tsiolkov-skiyandTsanderhad no practicalvaluefor designers. Thiswas thatmost

rareof casesin scienceand technology,when the designersbeganfromscratch. Butwhen the absolutelyinnovativegeneralproblem,guidedpurelyengineeringpsycholo_, was developedintoparticularp_blems, thedesignersbeganto look around:what was theremoreor lesssimilarthatwas alreadyin existence?Gagarin'sseatwas thereforedesignedon thebasisof aircraftejectionseats,the ancestorof his pressuresuitwasthat of high-altitudepilots,the controlpanelwas also somewhatremin-iscentof the instrumentarrangementin airplanes,etc.I am sayingall thisnot to reproachthe spacedesignersby any matterof means. It is simplythat aviation--thebranchof technology_st likeastronautics--wasbligatedto shareitsachievementswith the latter. Ifthe spacedesignershad notmade creativeuse of aviationexperience,they

wouldhaveactedmost unwiselyand the processof the creationof spacetechnologywouldhavelastedfor maw moreyears. I alsonote thatpro-fessionalpilotswere the firstto be trainedfor spaceflights,so any"aviation"designdecisionsto which theywere accustomedwere desirableeven from the purelypsychologicalpointof view.Candidateof technicalsciencesS. Darskiyin hiswork Ergonomikana kos-micheskomkorable*observedthat "an attemptwas made whendesignifighe VostoktobuildMe Cabinin accordancewith recommendationsf engineeringpsychol-ogy (or,as theynow say,ergonomicallyrational).A unifieddata andcontrolsystemwas createdfor the firsttime in the historyof aircraftconstruction.Multi-functionalnstrumentsfacilitatingthe work of thecosmonautappeared."This is the solemntruth,but not all thesedevicesappearedprimarilybecausetheywere the lastword in scienceand technology

or were the highestscientificachievementsor becausethey took intoaccountthe conditionsof spaceflight. Unifieddata systemsand multi-functionalinstrumentssubsequentlyappearedon many purelyterrestrialobjects.Technologybecamemore complicated,spacecrewsi,creased,scientificresearchprogramsexpanded,and the numberof keys and indicatorson thecontrolpanelsgr_, but againthesewere quantitativechanges. The phil-osophyof designsr_ained as before,whetherthe spacecraftwas one"forflying"--theVostok--orone"for living"--theSalyut. All theseseats,controlpanels,cabinetsand panelson the insidewere _de fromEarth

designsand likenesses.I make a specialreservation:I am speakingnot_rgo_mics on Spacecraft. 5


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about systemsspecificallyfor spacetechnologysuchas orientationsys-tems,for example,in which it is more difficultto find terrestrialdesignsand likenesses. I am speakingon!yof the physicalworldsur-roundingthecosmonautin flight. The unlquebehaviorof objectsand /216especiallyof liquidsin weightlessness,f course,also requiredengin-eeringcontrivancesand designwit and imparted(tothe joy of journalists)a certainzest to spaceexistencK:foodin tubes,a vacuumelectricrazor,originalsewagedisposaldevices,etc. But iF one excludesthesepurelyspecificdetails,the spaceworld surroundingman is outwardlyvery remin-iscentof the terrestrialworld. Afterphotographingthe controlpanelin a landedSoyuzspacecraftyou wouldeasilyconvinceevena tech-nicallycompetentpersonthat beforehis eyes is the cabinof a new airliner,and a photographof the Salyutcompartmentscan easilybe takenasthe pictureof, let us say, a submarineresearchlaboratory.A charac-teristicdetail:in the detailedworkof S. Darskiyon spacecraftergo-nomics,to which I havealreadyreferred,the word "weightlessness"ritssynonymis notmentionedevenonce.

It is curiousthatwe observethe very _amepicturein the historyof the developmentof Americanastronautics.In the US thereare thesameaviationroots,the similarityof terrestrialinteriors,and the sametransferof customaryterrestrialsurroundingsto space. I am far fromthinkingof any sortof borrowing. I can speakonly about the closenessof the logicin the scientificsearch--bothe and theAmericansbeganfrom the beginning.Weightlessnessmmediatelyannounceditself. YuriyGagarinrecalledhow his pencil"floatedaway"somewhere.Fromhis first,eighteen-dayflightVitallySevast'yanovbroughthomeas a souvenirsomewoolensocks

with holesin the littletoes:itwas preciselywith his littletoes thathe pushedawaywhen he "swam"in the Soyuz-9. AndriyanNikolayevfrequentlyrestedon the "ceiling":therewas more roomthere.Astronautsintuitivelysoughtthe most convenientand naturalinter-relationshipswithweightlessness.AstronautCharlesConradtook part inthe designof the Apollolunarcabin. The limitedsizeof this cabin hin-deredthe installationnext to the controlpanelof a seator evena stool.The designersstubbornlysoughta solution. With greatdifficultyConradmanagedto convincethemto throwaway this pieceof "furniture"and tolimitthemselvesto leg restraints.Havingalreadytwiceflownintospacepriorto thisflight,he knewthatit is no easierto stand in frontofthe controlpanelthan to sit inweightlessness.A bicycleergonometerwas mountedon the "ceiling"of the Salyut-4Sovietorbitalstation,whichdid not hindera singleone of thecosmonautsfrom exercisingwhileanotherworkedon the "floor."Weightlessnessas constantlyseeminglytriedto demonstrateto usnew possibilitiesthatit presented.And we, havingobeyedfor centuriesthe conservatismdevelopedforus by the Earth'sgravity,were timid anddid not dareto makeuse of gravity'sgifts. But did the matterlie onlyin timidityand oblivionto all the paradoxesof theworldof weightless-ness? Of coursenot.Each system,apparatusor instrumentwas createdwithan obligatoryconsiderationof the specificworkingconditionsin space,and primarilywith a considerationof weightlessness.But at first itwas difficultto purelyspeculativelyimaginehow it wouldbe betterand

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more convenientfor man to live and work in space. Moreover,flightpre-parationssometimeslastedmany monthsand duringtrainingunderEarthconditionsthe astronautshad to work out all theirown programdesignedfor spaceconditions.

Designersunderstoodthatwhat is goodfor spacemay not be suitablefor Earth,and viceversa. Let us say thatthe solarbatterypanelsopen. up by meansof a simplespringmechanismunderconditiensof weightless-ness. But if thismechanismis testedon Earth,it nay not ejectthepanel,sinceon Earththe panelsdo haveweightand in spacedo not. Theforceof the springdoesnot changein space. But let us assumethatapowerfulspringcanbe made for the sake of insurance,whichwill alsoejectthe panelson the Earth. But then the wingsof the batterywillbedamagedunderthe effectof theirownweight. Forthe teststhe bellowspanelswere placedverticallylikea screen,casterswere fittedto thebottom,andwhen the springmechanismwas trippedthe panelsrolledonthesecastersalonga smoothfloor.

In contrastto spacecraft,orbitalstations,just as solarbatteries,are designedto operateonlyunderconditionsof weightlessness.However,theywere also constructedaccordingto terrestrialstandards. I was ableto spendsometimein the ,modelsof the Salyutand Skylaborbitalstations.The insideof the Salyutactuallyis reminiscentof a submarine:thereare /217compartments,a passagewayin the middle,a floorand ceiling,equipmentand unitsalongthe sides. The spaceof Skylabis somewhatdifferentlyorganized,but it also has quitedistinctfIcorsand ceilings,and theconcepts"top,""bottom"and "side"existspecificallyand precisely. Ifthe navalanalogiesare continued,thenSkylabis more similarto theengineroom of a largesteamship. It is also dividedinto compartments,but theseare joinedby verticalladders. To put it briefly,you willfeelnormalon the Earthin the Salyutif it is lyingdownand in Skylabif it is standing.

Why is this so? I assumethat thisarrangementonly reflectsthelong-standingtraditionsof the spaceindustryin the two countries. Itis well knownthatin the SovietUnionorbitalstationsare assembledinthehorizontalposit_on. In this positionthe cosmonautswent throughalltheirtraining. Assemblyof the rocket-carrier,he joiningof the space-craftto it, the groundtestsand transportationf the entirerockettothe launchingpad arealso carriedout in the horizontalposition:therocketlies. The Americansperformthe sameoperationsin the verticalposition:the rocketstands. Thus,the arrangementinsidethe orbitalstationis basedon the principleof what is "mostconvenientand custom-ary." Most convenientand customaryfor the designer,and simultaneouslymost convenientand customaryfor theastronaut. Designengineershavequiteconsciouslytriedto createterrestrialinteriorsin spaceand tofreethe nervoussystemof the astronautfrom the need for additionalpsychologicaladaptation. So many differentpreviouslyunforeseenexper-ienceswere heapedon the astronautin spaceas it was that it was ofcoursenotworthwhileto intensifytheastronaut'suncustomary,althoughperhapsmore rationalandconvenient,situationunderthe newconditions.The designersunderstoodthat in spacetheirorbitalstationsdo not "lie"and do not "stand";they understoodthat underconditionsof weiqhtlessnessfloorsand ceilingsare abstractconcepts. Theyunderstood,but they

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closedtheireyes to thisand continuedto draw laddersthatwere al-readysenselessbecausethey had losttheir function.Onlyveryrecentlyhas weightlessnessbegunto be consideredwhenplacingvarioussystemsinsideorbitalstationsand an interiorlayoutpermittedthat is not the mostadvantageousforconditionson Earth. Idiscussedthiswith the commanderof the new spaceexpedition,BorisVolynov,priorto the flightof the Soyuz-21and theSalyut-5:"I thinkthatthe placementof approximatelyone-thirdof the instru-mentsand equipmentof the Salyut-5impliesthat itwill be more convenientto use thisequipmentin spacethanon Earth,"saidthe cosmonaut. "Weight-lessnessis capableof savinglivingspace. For example,a vacuumtankdesignedfor the bestadaptationof the organismto flightconditionsislocatedon a 'wall'and it is most convenientto climbinto it by movingalongthis 'wall.' On Earthit wouldhaveto be mountedon the floor,

becauseeven if someonewereto helpme and I climbedintothisspace onthewall, it would tearawayunderthe weightof my body."And so we come to the time for recognizingweightlessnessas one ofthe decidingfactorsin spacedesign. Whereasthe initialstagein themasteryof space is characterizedby a consciousdeparturefromthe possi-bilitieswhichweightlessnesspresentsto man--andthis has its own logic--now it is possibleto guessin the futurean organizationof spacethatwill not haveany terrestrialanalogiesat all. But what is the organiza-tion of spacein principle? It is architecture.

A 'DOUGHNUT'GOES INTOORBITStrictlyspeaking,thereshouldbe a questionmark in the title ofthisarticle,sincethe questionas to whetheror not the architectureofweightlessnessexistsremainsopen. Architectssimplydo not knowat thistimewhethertheywill be admittedto that veryenchantingworldwhereapplesdo not fall. The architectureof weightlessnessill arise and willbe in a conditionto developonly underthe indispensableonditionthatman be ableto ive withoutlimitationsin weightlessness.If the engin-eers are compelledto createartificialgravityfor man, we can speakonlyof certainmodificationsof architectureand designthatwill differto asmallerdegreefrom terrestrialvariantsthe closerthe engineersare ableto approachthe Earth'sgravitation.Fromthe timeof the "etherealsettlements"proposedby K.E.Tsiol- /218kovskiy,no smallnumberof projectshave beenput forwardfor similarstructures,most oftenprojectsof a fantasticnature. The "air city"ofthe sculptorPierreSequelles,which was to orbitthe Earthin one day,is one example. In thiscity, accordingto the author'sbelief,therewould be a universecontrolcenter. The sculptorKoshitsedesigneda"suspendedcity" soaringabove the Earth. The authorsof similar"bold"projectsusuallydid not troublethemselveswith even approximateenergycalculations,leavingthe engineersto solvewhy all theseFantasiesshouldfly and not fall.Amongthe projectsof "etherealsettlements,"however,therearetechnicallybasedand evenmathematicallyescribedprojectsin the first

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approximation.The most widespreadvariantwas probablya toroidalconstruction,simplyspeakinga "doughnut"and a planwith widelyspacedmassesrotatingaroundthe overallcenterof the masses,similartobarbells. Thereareothervariantsof "doughnuts"and "barbells"--everypossibletypeof wheel with spokesand axes.

In 1973at Princeton,AmericanscientiststoldSovietscientificjournalistsaboutthe "greatPrincetondoughnut."They spokeof aninstallationfor generationof hot plasma--theprototypeof a thermo-nuclearreactor--ofthe Soviet"tokamak"type. And the ideaof another"doughnut"has recentlyarisen,a thousandtimesgreaterthan the thermo-nuclearone. The so-calledPrincetongroupof O'Neil--physicists,powerengineers,designers--developedprojectfora permanenttoroidalorbitalstationrotatingaroundthe Earthin lunarorbit. One and one-halfkilo-metersin diameterand costinglO0 billiondollarsaccordingto the cal-culationsof the "Princetongroup,"the "doughnut"can take on boardaboutten thousandpersons. In additionto scientificresearch,thesepeoplewill be engagedin variousbranchesof production,basedon the use ofspace conditions(deepvacuum,weightlessness,emperaturedrop) and,most importantly,will accumulate,convertand in the formof radiationtransportsolarenergyto Earth. Scientistsbelievethat the rotationofthe "doughnut"will createartificialgravityon boardthe station,closeto the Earth'sgravity.

Anotherprojecton an extraterrestrialettlementabout400,000kilo-metersfromthe Earthand Moon and designedfor lO,O00personswas pub-lishedin 1975. This "etherealcity" is a cylinderwith a diameterofI00 metersand l kilometerlong. Rotationaroundthe longitudinalaxisat a rateof one revolutionevery 21 secondswill createan artificialgravitycloseto the Earth's. The authorof the project,P. Parker,believesthat 98 percentof the materialsneededfor thisspaceconstruc-tioncan be foundon the Moon,for whichpurposea colonywill havetobe createdtherewith a populationof approximately2000 persons. Afterconstructionis completed,thesepeoplewill becomethe firstinhabitantsof the "etherealsettlement."

I would liketo note that, in additionto rathersubstantialenergyconsumptionrequiredby artificialgravitation,there is anothernegativequality. In the work Kosmonavtv sistemekosmicheskoynavigatsii*,cos-monautYe. Khrunovand Candidateof technicalsciencesN. Romanteyevem-phasizethat "theoperationand use of variousastronavigatiJnalids inflightrequireof the crewknowledgeof the heavensand steadyhabitsincarryinqout orientationand navigationprocessesusingthe spacecraftcontrolsystem." Rotationof the "doughnut"will inavoidablyhindertheexecutionof similarscientificobservationssometimesmadewith greatprecision. Tale;of expeditionmemberson the Soyuz-4orbitalstationconfirmthatwell-coordinatednd clevercrewwork is requiredfor suchobservations,not to mentionthe fact that naturesometimesseverelyre-strictstheirduration. Studiesof the huge solar flareof June 15, 1973,by astronautPaul Weitzduringhis flighton the Skylablastedonly threeminutes,of which on_ ninutewent to directingthe instrumentsto the siteof the flare. I can'_ _venimaginewhat sort of trackingsystemsor othertechnicalcontrivances_ill be requiredfor similarobservationson a

*TheAstronautin the SpaceNavigationSystem.g


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irotating"doughnut"and I verymuch doubtthat suchobservationscan becarriedout at all.

Thus, structures with the generationof artificialgray- /219ity are certaintransitionalvariantsfrom terrestrialconditionstoweightlessness,ariantsof a "lightenedworld" inwhich life in itsexternalmanifestationsillmore or less correspondto terrestrialexistence. With a littleskill,after traininga persohwill be ableto learnhow to walk and lle downand to holdall movableobjectssur-roundinghim in relativeobedience. The Apoll_expeditions,for example,showedthat in a lunarworldsix timeslighterthanon the Earth,approxl-matelytwentyminutesare neededto learn how to walk and to acquireaspecial"lunar"bearing,which physicianscalledthe "poseof an oldape."Everythingthat has been saidabout the "lightworld"of spacecraftwith artificialgravitationis to a certaindegreevalidfor the Moon

and for all possibletypesof settlementson Mars or the satellitesofJupiter. I am certainthatthe monstrousnaturalconditionsof VenusandMercurywill stillnotoverpowerthe all-conqueringumancuriosity,andexpeditionsof earthmenwill landon the surfaceof theseplanetsas well.However,the constructionof stationarysettlementson themwill scarcelybecomea matterfor the nearestforeseeablefuture.

All theseheavenlybodieshave masseslessthanthatof the Earth)ridin this senseare "light"worlds. Again,thereexistno smallnumbe,"moreor lesstechnicallybasedprojectsforsettlementswith a con_ :tion of the naturalconditionsof similarbodies. Most of these p .sare for the Moon. The well-knowninnovativearchitectPaulMaymon ingworkedfor a longtimeon the problemsof buildingon the oceanfIL ,has publishedthe plan of a lunarcity externallyreminiscentof an upenfan. A bodyof metal pipesand prestressedcablesholdsa roof of steeland plasticfabric. The problemof the foundation,which consistsof sacksof steelfabricfilledwithlunar soil,has been solvedin a curiousway.The architectand sculptorKennethSnelsoncreateda planfora settlementon anotherplanetwith a framemade of pipesand cablesimpartingto theentireconstructionmaximumstrengthand resilience.The "metal"spheresof Snelsonwouldobviouslynot be suitableformartiansettlers,who canexpecthurricanesand dust storms. Sovietscientistshave proposedthatformationsand cratersalreadyformedby naturebe used for construction.Coveredby a roofand interconnectedy undergroundwalkways,the lattercan also forma vastextraterrestrialettlement.A plan for an indepen-dentlunarcolonydevelopedby the AmericansJohn Dossyand GuillermoTrottiwas publishedin Ig_5. This colony,designedfor 200 persons,shouldbe locatednearSt. George,not far from the landingsiteof the Apollo-15.It is a structure,half-coveredby the lunarsoil, with threecomplexesfor the launchand landingof spacecraft.The colonywill includehangersand repairshopsfor spaceequipment,scientificresearchlaboratories,electricpowerstations,farms forraisingplantsand cattle,a factoryfor producingvariousproducts,housingand administrativeacilitiesanda recreationalcenter. Thisplanwas developedwith a considerationofthemodernpotentialof rocketand space technologyand can be carriedoutwithinthe next tenyears.

*the"'craterlO


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r iiThis andmanyother plans are quite interesting and o_iginal, butthey are all strongly based on terrestrial architecture. Cities underdomesand closed settlement_ with artificial climate have also beendesigned for our needs on Earth, for polar regions, for example. Spheressimilar to those of Snelson were designed by his teacher BachminsterFuller and have becomevery widespread on "Earth" (for example, thecentral building of the exhibition complexat Sokolniki Park in Moscow).Of course, it is very difficult to build on remote heavenly bodies, onehundred times harder than in Antarctica, but nevertheless we more orless imaginewhatand how we wil; ouildin thoseareas. We alreadyknow,at leastfromthe exampleof theI4oon,that a "lightworld"is a quitespecificenvironment,thatthe natureof the newworldsof "reluctanceand "laziness"will be subordinatedto our terrestrialrules. We under-

standhow mucheffortand ingenuityis requiredof architectsforthisfascinatingwork outsidethe Earth. In this regardwe must applaudtheinitiativeof the pro-rectorof the _4oscowrchitecturalInstituteforscientificwork,S. Ozhegov,who thoughtof creatinga specialdepartmentwhereproblemsof the "architectureof extremeconditions"would be workedout--isolatedstructuresof polar regions,undergroundcnmplexes,settle- /220mentson otherplanets.

But a "lightworld"is forus earthmenonly a transitionalenvi,on-ment fromtheworld of gravityto the world of weightlessness.This isa fundamentaland qualitativetransition.It is well-knownthatthelawsof aerodynamicschangebeyondthe threshholdof the speedof sound.Evenmore profoundchangesawaitus there. But beforecomingto thisnew threshholdwe mustmake a stipulation.It is sufficientto remov_one keystonefroman arch for the wh_le dome to collapseinto ruins. Itis sufficientto removefrommy specu]ativestructuresonlyone assump-tion,and preciselythe assumptionthatman can live for a long periodunderconditionsof weightlessness,or all theseargumentsto immediatelybecomeverbaltrash. Moderntriumphsof scienceand theeternalall-conqueringinquisitivenessf the humanmindpermitus to hope thatin the futureweightlessnessill not be ableto dictateto man the periodsof his stay in space. And thenand only thenwill anotherproblemof atruly universalscalestandbeforeman. The problemis alreadynot specu-lativeunderwhoseconditionstherewill be no savingphrases"letusassume"and "letus suppose";the problemis specificand vital:to createa fundamentallynew architecturenot at all similarto the architectureof weightlessness.

THE GREAT FREEDOMOF WEIGHTLESSNESSImaginefor a minutethat peoplefromnaturecouldfly like swallowsor bees. How muchwould thisone conditionchangetheentireappearanceof terrestrialarchitecture:Wherewouldwe live? In nests? In beehives?

The broadestfieldfor fantasyis openedhere. The fact thatarchitecturewould be deliveredfrom themostancientelementexistingthroughouttime,forall peoples,in all buildingsfromthe Parthenonto a peasanthut,namely,the staircase,thisone thing in itselfis alreadya revolution.But evenwingedpeoplewould live in a worldoF gravityand theirarchitectureould continueto be subordinatedto the lawsof thisworld.

These lawswoulddeterminenotonly the entiretechnologyof construction,

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but also the esthetics of architecture,our ideas of what is correct,beautiful, harmonious, etc. "Architecture rests on constant principles,on the eternal laws of equilibrium,proportionalityand harmony,"writesthe outstandingarchitect and public activist, winner of the Lenin PeacePrize Oskar Niemeier (author's_derltning). It is precisely thepermanent weight and eternal laws of Newton's apple that determine theface of terrestrial architecture, turninq it into the architecture oforganized surfaces. The floor and ceili,g are the result of the forceof the Earth's gravitational attraction, and so they are eternal. Butwhat intricate projects have been executed recently! Jack Couelle, forexample, defending in practice his idea of using structures of livingorganisms in architecture, built curved houses re,.iniscentof amoeba andinfusoria. But the floor in these fantastic houses is ordinary, becauseeven the most refined snob doesn't want to live in a room with a curvedfloor. It is validly noted in a foreign article on design that "feetthemselves feel that under them are tiles or a rug, and they are especi-ally sensitive to an inclined floor." "The vertical in architecture helpsman keep his body straight. Inclinationsare dynamic because they signalequilibrium to the human senses," writes the English architect MitchellLeonard in his curious work The humanizationof space. Without touching onthe problems of weightlessness, he remarks casually that it is preciselygravitation that forces us to prefer horizontal surfaces because motionalong sloped surfaces requires a certain effort to keep the body in itscustomary position. "As a hypothesis,"writes Leonard, "I want tc proposethe assertion that there is a relationship between the shape of the sur-rounding space and the ma%dtude of the reaction to this shape of themuscular tension of the organism." But after all this muscular tension isthe direct consequence of the force of gravity. And this means that anyarchitecturalshape will also be in direct relationshipto it.

In fact, all buildings on Earth for all time, whether they be thecave cities of ancient China or the skyscrapers of New York, have alwaysbeen divided by something horizontal--callit a story, a floor, a ceiling,a gallery, a balcony, as you wish. The connection of these horizontalelements is the essence of architecture. In principle, Corinthian columns /221and walls of glass and aluminum do the same thing: connecting the hori-zontals, they create volumes. But it only seems to us that we populatethese volumes. In actually fact we populate the surfaces. It is notafter all without reason that we measure our housing in terms of square,and not cubic, meters.I

I will take the risk of proposing the following formulation:a planeperpendicularto the vector of the gravitational field is the basic elementof any architectureexisting in any gravitational field. Therefore, apolo-gizing beforehandto architects, I permit myself to call terrestrial archi-tecture plane architecture. This seems to me permissible as compared withthe truly volumetricarchitecture of weightlessness. But what is thisarchitecture,you ask. Unfortunately,there are few people who havethought about this and so it is rather difficult to answer such a question.Proposals of the "practical workers of space" are quite timid. Here ishow cosmonaut N. Rukavishnikov and candidate of technical sciences G.

II want to be correctly understood: cubic metern are very necessaryfor light, air and health, but we do live nevertheless on square meters.

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Morozov describe this "ethereal settlement" in their joint work Thecosmonaut scientist (Kosmonavt-issledovatel'):

"The external appearance of an orbital station differs from thatof modern ships. On the former there will be several isolated facilities,each of which will be a unique, independent laboratory: medical-biological,astronomical,technological,meteorological,etc. In these laboratoriesthe cosmonaut scientists will conduct their planned experiments eitherpersonally or using automatic scientific equipment which they must ser-vice. A special housing unit with sleeping areas, cabins and domesticfacilities is proposed for the station for purposes of relaxation, sleep-ing, eating and executing hygienic and physical exercise procedures.This unit will be a unique hotel for the crew and for the scientists onboard the station. Certain laboratories may be made in the form or sep-arate independent modular designs that can depart from the main ba'.estation, go into another trajectory and return to the base after com-pleting a certain cycle of tasks."

This is marvelousI But the most interesting thing is to learn whatsort of laboratories,cabins and sleeping areas will these be. How willthe scientific space center differ from those on Earth--only in the capac-ity of individuallaboratories to detach themselves from the main building?After all, a large underwater laboratorycan be made on Earth, from whichresearch submarines and bathyscaphes can depart. And when we step fromthe airport building directly into an airplane through a mobile corrugatedcorridor we are also "detaching ourselves" and then going into a neworbit.

Specialists in the field of astronautics are speaking more and morefrequently not only of man's stay in space and not even only about hisscientific research there, but about his active work outside the Earth,presuming the creation of material values for all of society. AcademicianV. Glushko writes that "it is being conceived in the more remote futureto gradually put into space industrialand even energy production in orderto preserve our planet from the destructive influence of technical progress."

Our brief experience in space work already shows that any work in theworld of weightlessness acquires substantial distinctive features. OnEarth we seemingly do not waste our efforts on holding our bodies in thevertical position. We don't think about this, just as we don't thinkabout our need to breathe. Instinct and experience in terrestrial lifehave developed in us certain, purely terrestrial habits in our contactwith inanimate nature and with the tools of labor. Neither the ape norman will even try to lift a box by grabbing it on the corner. If you mustturn a heavy wheel, you will quite unconsciously take it by the rim andnot by the hub, without thinking of the laws of mechanics, and possiblywithout even knowing them. If you have to move a pole or a log, you will,also without thinking, try to hold it near its center of gravity.

In a world where a log can be moved by taking hold of its very end, /222all these instincts are useless, and experience is even harmful. Otherinstincts must be developed and different experience must be acquiredthere. And it is doubtful that anyone today has the courage to predicthow a science laboratory or a factory shop will look in the world of con-

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stantweightlessnessr that anyonehas the imaginationto draw a pictureof the productionprocessin this shop.One of the creatorsof modernarchitecture,its greatesttheoretic-ianand outstandingpractitioner Gropius,oncewrote bitterly:"We were alwaysdeficientin science,but today it is pushingus out ofour stateof equilibrium...and in its hurriedadvanceovershadowsothercomponentsneededto harmonizehumanlife. Of courseyou would notcallthisthe age of art,wouldyou? This is the age of science."Gropiusliveda greatlife. When he was a child,aviationand cine-matographywere born,whenhe becamea youngman the atomicnucleuswassplit,and when he becamean old man,men flew intospace. He died onlytwo weeksbeforethe firstlunarexpeditionof earthmen. He saw thegreatesttriumphsof scienceand technologyand the bitternessof hiswordsis understandable,nd the reproachis probablyjust. But how

could thisgreatarchitectnot understandthat it is preciselyon thefoundationof this tremendousscientificprogressthata buildingof anunforeseenarchitecturemay be built? Afterall, it is preciselyto himthatthe remarkablesentencethat "thehistoricalmissionof the architectalwayslay in the achievementof total coordinationof all effortsaimedat creatingman'sphysicalenvironment"belongs.

And nowbeforeus is a qualitativelynew physicalenvironment--weight-lessness. What effortswill it requireof the architect? It is verydifficultto answerthisquestion. At the presenttimetherearenorecommendationsr rules forbuildinghousesin weightlessness.It remainsonly to be guidedby the beautifulpoemof BulatOkudzhava:

You buildit likeyou wri*e poetry,Likeon a canvas,drawingAlong the sketchesof your .oul,With all your heart,risking.If anything,therewillbe more thanenoughriskin thisconstruction.When I spokeaboutworkon the Vostok,I explainedwhy it was not easytobuildsuch a spacecraft:it was the firstand had no analogies.Construc-tion in weightlessnessill also haveno analogiesand it will be possibleto speakonly of itscertainvaguecontours.Any mediumof habitation,includingthe spaceenvironment,on onehanddeterminesand on theother handrequiresmodificationsin the pro-pertiesof the buildingmaterialsthatare used. Variousalloysof lightmetalshaveuntil now been the chief buildingmaterialin space. I amcertainthat in the futurethepaletteof spacebuilderswill be substan-tiallymorevariegated.We often speakof various"interdictins" imposedby the natureof spaceon engineeringand designthinking. But it is wrongto thinkthat spacewill alwaysonly "interdict."No, it will also "permit"buildersto do much of what Earth "forbids." In this regardthe innovativework of S. Shvartzis curious;in thiswork he examinesthe methodsof

preparingconstructionsthat expandand hardenin space. Saturatedwithspecialresinsand compactlybuilt,theseconstructionswill expandandhardenafterbeingtransportedintospaceunderthe effectof thedeepvacuum,ultravioletand infraredradiationand the temperaturedrop. Thus,

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thenatureitselfof space,the "emptiness"of the interplanetarynviron-ment,the nothingnesswillbecomethe alliesof extraterrestrialrchi-tects. If one speaksof shapes,spacepresentsus with trulyunlimitedpossibilities.Let us beginwiththe fact thatthe architectureofweightlessnessis the architectureof unlimitedsizes. Tall buildingsand televisiontowerswill set theirown architecturalrecords. Newmaterialsandthe talentof designand constructionorkerswill takepart in this undeclaredcompetition.But I don'tthinkthatanyoneonEarthwouldbuilda housetwenty-fivekilometershigh. In spaceit ispossible.

The architectureof weightlessnessis that of unlimitedpotentialfor /223shapeformation.Neithertheweightof buildingsnor thequalityof thesoil underthem limitsyou, and the bans on the inexorablestrengthofmaterialsdo notdisturbyou.2Analyzingthe plansof the aforementionedaul Maymon,the leading

Frencharchitectof our time Rene Sargerwrote: "Modernvisionariesremainunintelligiblenlyto thosewho can'timaginethe trulyfantasticpoten-tialof new technology."It is interestingthatSargerhimselfin 1962foundedthe ScientificResearchInstituteof Technologyand Architectureof OverstressedShells. He createdshellconstructionsin which onlytensileforcesemergedthanksto the doublecurvature. "Theseconstruc-tionsactuallyproducethe impressionof sailsfilledwith wind,"wrotethe architecturaltheoreticianMichelRagon,"andthey seeminglybecomeweightless."ArchitectRobichonconfirmed,lookingat the worksof Sar-ger,that "we are witnessesof architectureexpressingweightlessness."In no way belittlingthe innovationof the Frencharchitect,whoobviouslyhas greatprospectsin terrestrialarchitecture,it shouldbenotedthat his successis very far from the actualpotentialof the archi-tectureof weightlessness.No super-overstressedonstructionwill allowyou to build,let us say,a buildingin the formof an inverted"L" sothatthe top strokewould be ten (or one hundred!)timeslongerthanthebottomstroke. But underconditionsof weightlessnessthisis pos-sibleif only becausethere are no top and bottomstrokesand heightandlengthare identicalconcepts. Underconditionsof weightlessnesssuchconceptsas "front"and "rear",in the case of the absenceof spacecraftmotion,willmore correctlybe replacedby themore definite"tothe front"and "to the rear." And if there is no heightand length,no front andrear,thismeans thatsomethingcompletelyobligatoryfor terrestrialarchi-tecturebecomescompletelyoptionalfor the architectureof weightlessness.In terrestrialarchitectureit is possibleto speakof diagonalmovementin space (an exampleof this is the classic"St.Joseph'sHome"by FrankLloydWright),whilein weightlessnessthis is impossiblebecauseit ismeaningless.If thereis no height,thismeans thatthereare no eternalfloorsandceilingson Earth. For an inhabitantin weightlessnessit makesno differencewhat type of flooris in his house--straight,lopingor

2Moreprecisely,therewillalsobe strengthcalculationsin thiscase.Let us assumethatthe externalvacuumand pressureinsidethe spacehouserequirerespectfor the strengthof materials,but thiswil_ alreadybenot thatconstructionstrengthof materialswhich bindsthe architectbythe handsand feeton Earth.J5


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curved. The inhabitantwill livenot in an apartment,but ratherin avolume. He will requirefromthe architectan organizationof spaceand not of an area;this organizationwill be such that,sittingon theceiling,as on currentorbitalstations,he will not suspectthathe isdoingso. The parallepipedof the room underconditionsof weightless-nesswill naturallyand logicallybe rebornintoa sphere--anidealspaceof equalpotential.

The spherehas alwaysattractedterrestrialbuilders,whilegravi-tationdid not permititsuse and limitedits potentialto hemispheresand domes. The attractivenessf the sphereis explained,on one hand,but its purelygeometricnature:it is so capaciousthat its furtherdivisionis impossible;on the otherhand,thisattractivenesss explain-ed by the fact thatit is a geometricshapewith a maximumvolumewhenthe surfaceis minimum. In otherwords,by usingthe sphere(or hemi-sphere)you will spenda minimumamountof buildingmaterialto createone unit of volume. In thiscase the economicbenefitsthat are indis-putableon Earthwill be especiallyfeltat the firststageof the emer-genceof "etherealsettlements,"when the buildingmaterialswill besuppliedfrom the Earthor Moon and theirweightwill scarcelybecometheirfirstcharacteristic.

Followingthe logicof weightlessness,e shallsee that if a roomis regeneratedintoa sphere,then a corridoris convertedinto a pipe,and a doorbecomesa hatch. And the door-hatchesfrom the corridor-pipewillnot be placedto the leftor right,but ratheroverthe entirecir-cumferenceof thispipe.Nevertheless,the socksof VitaliySevast'yanovwith holesin thetoe_involuntarilysuggestthe ideathat the terms "sphere"and "pipe"._eobviouslynotentirelyaccurate. It must be assumedthatthis isnot exactlya sphereor a pipe. The complicatednessf the shapeswillbe dictatedby the physicalsizeand the kinematicsof the humanbody.Underconditionsof weigh_iessness,s on Earth,it is not possible,letus say,to take into considerationthe fact thatthe humanknee bends

backwardand not forwardas for a grasshopper.Imaginethat you are float- /224ing in a certainpipe,pushingoff from its walls to gain speed. It isclear that it would be more convenientto floatif thesewallswere notsm,_thbut rathercorrugated.And by the term room-sphereI mean, to bemore precise,a certainpolyhedron,a certaincomplexclosedvolumewhoseinnergeometryis builtwitha considerationof humanconvenience.Wethereforeleavethe terms"sphere"and "pipe"only for the sake of sim-plicity,implyingthe conditionalityf theseconcepts.

Thus, let'stry to lookat our new spacesettlement. In the room-spheresucha simpleandordinarythingas, for example,a table,becomesa complex,inconvenient,non-functionaltem,as the designer_say. Youwould agreethat if thereis no flooror ceilingin the roomthatfurni-ture can have no top or bottom. A tablewithpedestalsor legs is logic-ally regeneratedintoa cubeand, it seemsmore probableto me, intoanicosahedron--aolyhedroncomposedof equilateraltriangles. This is notgood. If this tablecan be fastenedwith somesortof hardcompoundormagneticfield,thenthisis alreadya questionof technology.The mainthingis that in weightlessnessa personwill be comfortablesittingat a

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table-icosahedron,o matterwhat side he sits on. Sits? Terrestrialtermsalreadybotherus. "A man sat in a chair"--inweightlessnessthis is a purelyarbitraryconcept,and this chairis not neededas anobjectdevoidof any function, Even in the "lunar"cabinof the Apollo,as you recall,it was unnecessary.

In terrestriallife thereare quitedefiniteverbs"to lie"and "tosit,"describingpositionsthatare, so to speak,directlycontradictory.But in spacethereis an equalssignbetween"I am lyingdown" and "Iam standingup." I rememberthe Crimeain August 1961when GermanTitov,who had justreturnedfrom his day-longspaceflight,was vacationingwith YuriyGagarin. Titovsaida lot about his "stellardays,"but whenI askedhow he had slept,he began to think:"I reallydon't know. Perhapsstandingand perhapslyingdown. Whoknows? Afterall_,there'sno differencein weightlessness."I recallthatthosewords struckme mostof all. It was necessaryto performsomedefiniteand quiteuncustomarymentalwork to understandnot justwith my head but alsowith my heart that a verticallystandingbed,absolutelyimpossibleon Earth,would not looksillyin a worldwhere the verticalis equalto the horizontal. In our lifeon Earthanyhuman endeavoris necessarilylinkedwith a certainspaceattachedto it.In order to chopwood,grinda partor write poetry,man's bodymustoccupya certainpositionor pose. This rule is also obviouslyvalidfor weightlessness.A surgeonwill neverbe able to performan operationby flyingaroundthe patient,or an astronomerto make observationswhilesoaringaroundhis telescope. On the Earththe body is primarilyfastenedby the Earth'sgravity. Furniturein all its formshere onlyaids gravi-tation. Furnitureis a functionof gravitation.But underconditionsof

weightlessnessfixedbodiesare very arbitrarilylinkedwith furniture.The firstastronautsquicklyunderstoodthat they couldsay "I am sittingin a chair"onlywhentheywerestrappedin. The seatbelt, and not thechair,bridleor horse,bearsthe main function.Weightlessnessrequiresa new "space"understandingof design. Itopenstrulyunboundedprospectsfor the most daringsearchand the boldestexperimentation.We are speakinghereof the creationof a new structure,of that veryextremecasewhich,in the words of N. Voronovand Ya. Shesto-pal, authorsof the bookEstetikatekhniki*,"ariseswhen newprinciples,lawsor discoveriesthat have not been formallyor structurallyrealizedcome forwardas objectsof arrangements."Incidentally,ll theaforementioneddoesnot at all threatendesign

by breakingits foundations(in contrastto architecture).And whereasone of the rulesof "terrestrial"esign,whose basis is arrangement,statesthat the effectivenessof the end resultwill be higherthe morethe initialobjectsare transformed,modifiedandadaptedto one anotherand to the new generaltask,in the world of weightlessnessthis ruleretainsits fullvalidity.Them ottoof Le Corbusierthat "the house is a machinefor livingin"alwaysfrightenedme: a house is a house and a machineis a machine. And

no matterwhat technicalinnovationsare embodiedin the architectureof /22_.__5*The Estheticsof Design 17


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" i[weightlessness,I want to believethat the inhabitantsof "etherealsettlements"ill stiilnot live in machines. It is anothermatterthatthe conceptionsto whichwe are accustomedconcerningthe house,com-fortand beautymustnecessarilyundergosubstantialchanges.

It may be thatthe everydayconceptof "my own home"will be con-vertedin spaceinto "my own littlesphere." Thoselivingin spacewillnot knowthe charmof a spaciouslivingroomwith beautifulheavycur-tains,a roundtable,an orangelampshadeor an old chandelier,aquietlywhistlingsamovarand jam in grandmotherlyrosettes. Thinkingof thisyou experiencea melancholyChekhoviansadness,andyou becomesad forpeoplefloatingin spheresaroundtable-polyhedrons.I imaginethatone of the generations(andperhapsnot onlyone)of spaceinhabitantsin the remotefuturemay be an unhappygeneration,sincetime,tightlycompressedby scientificprogress,requiresthat the

humanheart forgettheEarth untilhe lovesspace. But in the historicalsensethiswill probablybe a very shortperiod. Peoplein the "etherealsettlements"ill becomeunaccustomedto our rectilinearroomsas easilyaswe becameunaccustomedto caves,hutsand izbas[peasanthuts]withoutchimneysto theirfireplaces.And if we speakfrankly,havinggrownup with runningwaterand electricity,we will rarelyand not alwayssincerelylongforwells and torches.Today,whennot evenone hundredmen havebeenin space,it is hardfor us to imaginethe futurescaleof the masteryand settlementof space.In the nearestfuturethe flightsof spacecraftthatcan be usedmanytimeswill graduallyreduceto nothingthe heroicexclusivenessof theastronautprofession,and by the startof the 21stcenturywe shallregardpeopleworkingin spacein the sameway as we currentlyregardpartici-pantsin Antarcticexpeditions.The numberof these people--astronaut-pilots,scientists,engineers,assemblyand constructionworkers,powerengineers,radiospecialists,doctors--willgrow fromyear to year at aneveracceleratingratein themannerof an avalanche. Calculationsmadeby the famousSovietastrophysicist,orrespondentmemberof the USSRAcademyof SciencesI. Shklovskiy,showthat in fivehundredyears,andunderthe most unfavorableeconomicconditionsin 2,500years,abouttenbillionpersons--considerablyore thancurrentlyinhabitthe Earth--willlive in "etherealsettlements"withinthe SolarSystem. But even2,500

yearson the scaleof historyare not as much as they seem. A longerperiodseparatesus fromNefertiteand Tutankhamen,and pharaohCheops,famedforhis greatpyramid,is almosttwiceas far removedfrom us on the scaleoftimeas thesefuturespace inhabitants.Our remote,but on thewholeclose,descendentswill be born in weightlessnessandwill livetherepermanently.And it is possiblethatverymany of themwill neverfly to Earthand learnthat in theirgreat-grandfather'souse therewas a roundtableand an oldchandelier.And if theydo fly herewon'tit seem to them, born in un-boundedspaces,thatour housesare funnyand ridiculousand thatour roomsare strangeand uncomfortable?And when theyfly here,it will probablybe very difficultand very unusualfor themin the world of our gravity,in theworld where man is so unfreethathe can'teven fly. Yet,whoknows? Perhapsthe futurewill placebeforephysiologistsand physiciansa new problem,havingturnedour modernconcernsfromour feet to our heads:will a man born in weightlessnessand havingspendlongyears therebe able

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1 ito liveon Earth? But if the successof modernscienceplantsin usassurancethatweightlessnesswillbe conquered,thenwe haveevenmoregroundsfor believingthatthe mightyscienceof the futurewillalsomanagewiththe reverseproblem.

Recallingthe fantasticbooksof my adolescence,I catchmyselfinthoughtsthatthe underwaterinhabitantsof ConanDoyle'sChasmof Mara-kotovoor theaboriginesof H.G. Wells'Countryof the Blindproduceafee-'e'eTTn-gf sadnessin me, while I enviedthe invisibleman and Ichthean-der. Becausein the firstthe authorstookaway somethingthatwe have,whilethe secondgroupwas awardedcapabilitiesunaccessibleto us.

I wish to repeatagain:everythingof which I havespokenis onlyasketch,foodfor thought,nothingmore. I am absolutelycertainof onlyone thing:the futureof astronautics,in additionto all its scientificand materialbenefits,is profoundlyoptimistic,for it is capableofgivingman somethingvery important:the previouslyunaccessiblepossi-bilityof realizingthe wildestdreams. When the forbiddenbecomesthe /226accessible,and the impossiblebecomesthe possible,we are alwaysafraidof this for a certainmoment. Shallwe not now experiencethisfleetingtimidity,havingstoppedon the roadof outerspaceand lookingintothe vagueoutlinesof citiesfloatingin the stellarabyss? Wesenseratherthan knowthat beyondthis threshholdthe realizationofthe greatestof all our fantasiesawaitsus, and that the time is comingto combineallour knowledgeand talents,the time for themost completeand thehighestmanifestationof humanthoughtand the humanspirit.

COMMENTSON THEARTICLE

by a cosmonaut:Problemsof spacearchitecturearoseas soonas man penetratedspace.They undoubtedlyexisttoday. It is true thatthe word "arcr,itecture"snot yet beingtlsedby specialistsin the fieldof spacetechnology. It isreplacedby thewords "shape,""arrangement,"tc.,but theessencefromthis is unchanged:proceedingfromthe new requirementsand conditions,problemssimilarto thoseof architecturemustbe solvedtoday.For example,the problemof how to make an orbitalstationsuch thatit holdsall the necessaryequipmentand itsmass remainsminimal. Howto givethe stationa shape thatwouldpermititsmotionto be controlledin the easiestmanner. How to createinsidethe stationthemaximumcon-

veniencesforthework and lifeof the crew underconditionsof weightless-ness. How to place the windowsin orderto providethe bestview. Eventhecolorof theouter surfacesmustbe speciallyselectedwhen buildingspacecraft:this requiresa specificcoefficientof reflectionguaranteeingthe necessaryheatingconditionsthroughoutthe entireconstruction.

To put it briefly,thereis alreadya largenumberof problemstodaysimilarto thosebeingsolvedby "terrestrial"architects.The popularandfascinatingwork of YaroslavGolovanovis thereforequite interestingto me.AlekseyYeliseyev,Doctorof TechnicalSciences,twiceHeroof the USSR

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by an architect:Scienceand technologyaredevelopingso rapidlyand they bringsomanydiscoveriesto mankindthatthe most impertinentfantasiesarebecomingrealities.That is why the articleof YaroslavGolovanov,whichthe authorcharacterizedas sketchesand food forthought,isundoubtedlyof interest.Architecturealwayssurroundsman. The createdlifeenvironmentmust alsotake intoconsiderationthe necessaryconveniencesfor manunderthe mostdiverseconditions.Howevervaguethe futurescaleandprospectsformasteringspace,we shouldthinkbeforehandof forecastingthe environme.Jtf man'sstay in space. The interestingand fascinatinglywrittenarticleof Ya. Golovanovwill helpnotonly architects,but alsopeopleof otherprofessionsto give some thoughtto themost interestingproblemsof man'sstayoutsidethe Earth.The examinationand preparationof solutionsto theseproblemsrequiregreatingenuityand inventions.Afterall,we are speakingofa fu_,damentallyew architecturefor conditionsof weightlessnessthatdiffersfromterrestrialarchitecture.The needfor closecooperationbetweenarchitectsand specialistsin spacetechnologywill inavoidablyarisein the future. And one can only envy the youngarchitectswho willhaveoccasionto carryout the first planscreatedfor the worldofweightlessness.

GeorgiyOrlov,Professor,NationalArchitectof the USSR

An Architect in a World Where Apples Do Not Fall (February 1, 1977)

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Transcript of An Architect in a World Where Apples Do Not Fall (February 1, 1977)