Type: Research & Education
Location: Antarctica
Year: 2005
Status: Design
Team: Eike Schling, Michael Kehr, Simone Hiesinger and Sandra Spindler
Office: TU Munich, Institute for Building Typology, Prof. Richard Horden
Polar Lab is a temporary habitat and research station, deployable by helicopter or standard transportation sledges. The basic concept was to design an independently functioning capsule that can be delivered in one drop, capable of housing three persons for a duration of up to three weeks without further need of supply. Polar Lab combines a simple structure and an optimal volume-surface ratio for aerodynamic, energy-efficency and redundancy qualities. It is capable of expanding its volume to create more ideal research conditions. During the two semester project, several models were built, including a 1:1 interior mock up and a carbon prototype panel. Additionally, a Vac-Tube-Solar-Heater was developed and later tested in Zermatt.
Eike Schling 