WORLD FLOATING CITY
futuristic dream that just might come true
Noticethe similarity of the above concept with the 1928 model of an airporton top of a giant building! Los Angeles architects expected privateplanes to replace automobiles in a near future; hence this 300m-longroof-top airstrip:
Facts:The largest aircraft this flight deck can accept are turboprop aircraftin the 38 to 40-passenger range. (Oh well, here goes the "wow"factor...)
More on this titanic undertaking here and here, where you can also trace the evolution of its design.
The following images are either "Work in Progress" or "Concept Art".
This floating city is a top gun in nuclear circles
Jason Gregory
A Floating City
The USS Ronald Reagan is the Navy's newest Nimitz-class aircraftcarrier, ported at San Diego since its commissioning in 2004. The1,096-foot “floating city”carries more than 80 combat aircraft, can house up to 6,000 sailors,and carries enough food and supplies to operate for about 120 days.
Mega Engineering
The Living Universe Foundation - www.Luf.org
FLOATING CITY
[text and images from this TU-Delft webpage]"The Floating City is a conceptfor sustainable, innovative urbanization in a densely occupied deltaarea. The concept was developed by Deltasync 04, a multidisciplinaryteam of master and doctoral students at Delft University of Technology.It was awarded first prize in the international Royal HaskoningDeltacompetition, which was held October 2006."
In the near future, visitors to the virtual world of Second Life may come across a floating city with a TU Delft logo.
Uses of Second Life are becoming more seriousUntil recently, virtual worlds were associated with entertainment, butnow the emphasis is shifting more and more towards serious uses. Thisis why Dr. Igor Mayer from the Faculty of Technique, Policy andManagement thought it high time the University made an appearance inthis virtual world. Dr Mayer is a research worker and also one of theleaders of the project on Second Life which, according to him, “is awonderful arena for promoting designs and inventions that originate inDelft. You may soon be able to travel around the campus in thesubmarine Wasub, or go kite-flying with one of Professor Ockels’energy-generating kites.”
Floating city becomes campusAt the moment, a team of researchers from TU Delft aredeveloping two islands – as the units of land are called in Second Lifejargon. One of the islands is going to be transformed into arevolutionary campus, surrounded by virtual water – something which hasnever been done before. The TU Delft’s floating campus is modelled onthe floating city idea.
The other islandwill be called Next Generation Infrastructures. Once it is has beencompleted, researchers will be able to experiment there with newinteractive communication techniques. This island has the same name asa national research programme in the Netherlands that is focussed onnew knowledge infrastructures and in which TU Delft is taking part.Second Life is sustainable
The Second Lifeversion of TU Delft aims to give its students and employees the chanceto see how the University’s objectives are being accomplished. Thetheme ‘sustainability’ is particularly suitable for this purpose.
This is an island based on the geotangent architecture of aspheroid. In theory one could run electric current through rebar insea water and eventually and island would form. One could carefully"plant" coral reefs around the island thereby helping protect thebeaches and provide a habitat for fish and other sea life.
This is one of the Dubai resort communities that was made entirely by humans in the shape of a date palm.
Another of the Dubai island communities in the shape of the world.
Oceana Group
a collection of marine resort, community, and housing concepts - Pierre Zoppini
The project of an artificial island-city /transpiration on the Ocean
The Japanese architect, K. Terom, developed aplan for a project, a suburb of Tokyo, which could be located 120 km fromthe present shoreline of Japan. In this project, a city will be constructedon piles, consisting of four levels (platforms); the size of each wouldbe 5 X 5 km. Each level would have a height of 20m. An area on the orderof 100 km2 is required for living accommodations and infrastructureto support 1 million residents. The spaces built above the piles wouldbe stacked, containing large administrative, industrial, commercial, andliving accommodations. On a roof of the structure a rest zone and an airportwould be built, well-separated from each other. The suburb would be connectedto the capital city by high-speed ferry service.
There are many architectural designs for ocean cities.The "Ocean Venice" project deserves special attention. An artificial islandholding up to 30,000 people, would be erected 28 km from the east coastof Great Britain, over a depth of 10 m of water. The city, shown here inan artist’s concept, appears to have a step-like wall, similar to thatof a huge amphitheatre. Power stations, fuelled by locally-supplied underwaternatural gas, would be located on the perimeter. This artificial islandwould be built on a concrete and rock base. The wall of the amphitheatrewould serve to protect the city from winds, and the upper, circular tierswill be used for living accommodations, joined together by escalators.
As the depth to the sea floor increases, the costof fixed, artificial islands sharply increases. Therefore, a great dealof interest has been shown in the concept of “floating islands”. Buildingislands that float is a widely used practice. In the port city of Valdez,Alaska, a floating container terminal has been built, consisting of twosections which are anchored, and are connected to the shore by two steelbridges.
Floating islands will be constructed from concreteand steel designs, which are intended for accommodating factories or shipyards.To keep them in place, there will be anchor pilings, or supports fixedto the sea bed. Along Arctic coastlines, artificial areas could be createdby using islands formed by pack ice.
The floating city project - an industrial complexfor extracting and shipping mineral wealth from the sea floor
Industrial complexes built on the sea floor willneed a maintenance base on the Ocean surface. It will represent a floatingcity, the body of which is constructed from steel or steel and concrete.In this city - base, it will be necessary to install a high-power electricalfacility, repair plant, shops, storage, and other buildings needed to servicean underwater industrial business, and to maintain the normal life of thepeople living there. From the city - base there will have to be transportvessel moorings, ensuring access to the shore. Even storms will not bedisruptive for such a city, because their effects will be greatly dampenedby a pneumatic breakwater made from plastic pipe with sets of holes. Thebreakwater pipe will surround the entire city area, incorporating a compressorstation. If there are small waves on the sea, the breakwater does not operate,but as soon as the size of the waves become menacing, automatic controlunits will activate the compressors.
The floating airport of future
Many modern cities near the Ocean, and their suburbs,are overpopulated. In these areas it is difficult to find land suitableand convenient for building airports. The increasing volume of air trafficproduces noise that has a harmful effect on people’s lives. This situationforces airports to be built away form the cities, and for some, artificiallycreated islands are the answer to this problem.
In the USA, Great Britain and Japan, projectsand designs for airports built on artificial, floating islands are beingdeveloped.
A floating-port project built of steel andreinforced concrete
The floating island can be a marine port whichwill ensure safe mooring of large-tonnage vessels. Cargo vessels and tankerscan deliver minerals and petroleum extracted from the sea floor in suchports. Engineers have produced a huge horseshoe design for this type offloating facility, with protected spaces inside, serving as a port of callfor these vessels.
There are already artificial ports with well-arrangedterminals for cargo handling situated at significant distances from theshore.
Floating City Proposed For Shanghai World Expo
A team of Dutch designers recently revealed a plan to build afloating city on Shanghai’s Huangpu River. If built, the city willdebut during World Expo Shanghai 2010. The floating city will have manygreen elements — it will use the water of the river for cooling and itthe city will make use of renewable energy. However, one has to wonderif matters like sewage treatment and impact on the river environmenthave been addressed. The model of the construction on display atShanghai Sculpture Space, has five honeycomb-like balls, one big onesurrounded by four smaller ones, functioning as a 3D cinema, pubs, ashopping mall and theater. The biggest honeycomb will have a restaurantat the top floor 80 meters above the river, the report said.
The project would be part of the Expo’s “Urban Best Practices Area,”where cities have been invited to display their own innovativetechnologies to improve urban living conditions, said Eric Verwaal, ofthe Dutch Consulate-General in Shanghai.
"People living in the floating city can contact with people outsideconveniently", said Michiel Fremouw, CEO of the designing company Deltasync. He went on to say that residents will be able to fish easily from their homes.
The largest cruise shipin the world has arrived at Southamton Docks, casting the south ofEngland into shade and confusing local birdlife. Keen sun-bathers,heartened by the recent thaw, are said to be fuming. Judy Punchers fromDorchester was on the beach at Lyme Regis when the eclipse occured. ‘Itwas just getting warm enough to take my coat off,’ she said. ‘Thensuddenly this shadow creeps along the beach like winter.’
The giant Cruise Liner
Freedom of the Seas has been likened to a floating city, boastingits own shopping mall, drug problem and twenty-three Starbucks coffeeshops. And like any city of consequence, the rush hour traffic isatrocious, a bottleneck developing every morning outside the swimmingpool area. The swimming pool being a giant lake surrounded by mountainsand people with stumpy legs walking around in hiking boots.
It will leave Southampton on Wednesday, thereby giving the southcoast back its tepid sun. Then it will head for New York where it willbecome the 51st state of America.
Freedom Ship is a concept for a floating city proposed by Norman Nixon of Freedom Ship International.
Venice
Theperfect get away for short breaks Venice is possibly the most beautifuland romantic city in Europe. A truly extraordinary place, this floatingcity is one of Italy's treasures and has inspired artists, poets andwriters for centuries. Its churches and museums are home to pricelessworks of art and its crumbling buildings only add to the otherworldlyfeeling that oozes from the winding passageways and rippling canals.
Hong Kong Floating City
Picture from the Floating City HongKong Aberdeen in China Photo by Imbi Gassmann
floatingcity of Aberdeen
floatingrestaurant
From the "Floating City" inAberdeen Harbour, March 27. 1977.
- here a view of the "Jumbo"restaurant, - one of the huge floating restaurants in the harbour -
The "Tai Pak" floating restaurant,- March 27. 1977 -
- in Aberdeen Harbour, - Aberdeen,Hong Kong -
The "Floating City" in AberdeenHarbour, - Hong Kong -, March 27. 1977
- a view of the "Floating City"and the huge floating restaurant "Jumbo" in the middle of it all -
Floating city in Thailand