The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) — renowned for funding the development of futuristic concepts like flying aircraft carriers or massive lunar streetlights — is now seeking public input on its ambitious plans to construct enormous “bio-mechanical space structures.”
As reported by Gizmodo, the agency recently filed a Request for Information regarding this eyebrow-raising idea. While the exact details remain unclear, the concept sounds undeniably groundbreaking.
According to the request, DARPA is exploring the “feasibility” of creating “useful space structures” exceeding 1,600 feet in length. These structures aim to “disrupt the current state-of-the-art and position biology as a complimentary component of the in-space assembly infrastructure.”
The document outlines potential applications, including “tethers for a space elevator, grid-nets for orbital debris remediation, kilometer-scale interferometers for radio science, new self-assembled wings of a commercial space station for hosting additional payloads, or on-demand production of patch materials to adhere and repair micrometeorite damage.”
DARPA is particularly interested in developing new methods and “technical insights” to create “large, self-assembled, mechanically stable biological growths in space.”
Constructing larger structures in space offers numerous advantages. For instance, it is significantly cheaper than launching massive components and building materials from Earth.
Beyond traditional methods like welding metal, DARPA is looking further ahead, aiming to leverage biological engineering to harness its “rapid growth properties.” This approach could eventually require minimal human intervention.
The agency uses a tent as an analogy to explain the concept. “Given the structural material of the tent poles, biological growth mechanisms are envisioned to be the ‘cover’ of the tent,” the document states.
In essence, DARPA’s vision could be seen as a futuristic, perhaps unsettling, mass of space “filler” enveloping essential “electronics or structural materials.”
Is the agency attempting to bypass conventional space station construction and leap directly into a sci-fi-inspired paradigm where space structures are biologically grown rather than built?
This concept is undeniably far-fetched, especially since such technology has yet to be realized on Earth. Current explorations into living building materials, like mycelium, are still in their infancy, so the timeline for developing this idea remains uncertain.
