NASA’s 1977 plan for a city in space

Transcript

In 1977, NASA described a bold idea for a permanent city in space: a rotating habitat at a stable point near the Moon, built for about ten thousand people. The goal was to make life off Earth feel as practical as life on Earth, with sunlight, farms, homes, and industry all working together. One striking detail is that the design called for a giant torus, almost one mile across, with artificial gravity from rotation and food grown under natural light. Another is that the colony would rely on Moon-mined materials and even produce solar power stations for Earth. If a space city could grow food and make its own building materials, what would be the hardest part of living there?