2020-12-03T12:34:00Z

2020-12-03

Default License

New Space

Biomimetic approaches to design:

Cases of Extreme Environments

free

School of Science and Technology, MSc in Strategic Product Design

This paper derived inspiration from recent design studies regarding the habituation of extraterrestrial, extreme environments. The interest in studying life in extreme environments on Earth and the augmenting industrial and research attempts to create knowledge and applications for sustaining life in the extremes is rising. Along with this interest, an abundance of design thinking approaches are stated and explored. The research ponders and take as ground base the two main challenges that torment and ignite our era’s scientific and industry world; the new quest for Space exploration and Climate Change deterioration. The first addresses the harshest environment for humans known so far and the latter presents a near future of extreme climatic and ecosystem conditions. Therefore, it was considered interesting to explore biomimicry; a methodology of design problem solving that could perhaps consider both challenges, by diving into the natural world of the extremes, to finding inspiration for product and spatial design solutions for multiple stressors and sustainable applications. Biomimicry as a type of natural analogy method, when executed gracefully, gives great examples of novelty and economy in design solutions. The following research reviewed the current knowledge of nature’s adaptations to extreme environments and investigated examples of developed biomimetic technologies for space applications and research from various fields that presented interdisciplinary, sustainable approaches for space and Earth. The specific issues argued by the author are the necessity of advancing biomimetic approaches for space exploration and use them as tools for the emergence of extreme climatic environment on Earth. Under the cause of the study, space-related knowledge gaps were surveyed, a design study of biomimetic ideation was analysed and suggestions for further research of a biomimetic design methodology was formed as an outlook for potential development in biomimetics and product design. By experimenting on a biomimetic-concept design study, the future of design disciplines in the NewSpace and “resources reproaching” era was questioned. Can biomimicry prove itself useful for interdisciplinary collaboration of future design solutions and what aspects could cause limitations? Keywords: biomimicry, product design, extreme environments, space, climate change, space for earth

Assistant Professor

Tsoggas, Konstantinos

ihu