On March 6, MIT initiated its inaugural lunar landing endeavor since the Apollo epoch, dispatching three payloads — the AstroAnt, the RESOURCE 3D camera, and the HUMANS nanowafer — to the southern polar region of the moon. This mission was coordinated from Luna, a command center created by students and faculty from the MIT Department of Architecture, in partnership with the MIT Space Exploration Initiative, Inploration, and Simpson Gumpertz and Heger. It is situated in the gallery on the ground floor of the MIT Media Lab and is accessible to the public as part of Artfinity, MIT’s Arts Festival. This installation enables guests to witness payload operators in action while interacting with the software employed for the mission, thanks to virtual reality.
As a pivotal center for mission activities, the control room represents a structural and conceptual milestone, harmonizing technical obstacles with an aspiration for an immersive experience, resulting from a multidisciplinary strategy. “This will be our moon here on Earth,” states Mateo Fernandez, a third-year MArch student and 2024 MAD Design Fellow, who conceived and constructed Luna in conjunction with Nebyu Haile, a PhD candidate in the Building Technology specialization within the Department of Architecture, and Simon Lesina Debiasi, a research assistant in the SMArchS Computation program and a member of the Self-Assembly Lab. “The layout was designed for individuals — enabling researchers to always observe what’s occurring, and allowing viewers a 360-degree panoramic perspective of all activities,” explains Fernandez. “A core vision of the team was to devise a control room that stepped away from the conventional, isolated model — one that instead encouraged the public to observe, pose inquiries, and engage with the mission,” adds Haile.
In this endeavor, students received guidance from Skylar Tibbits, founder and co-director of the Self-Assembly Lab, associate professor of design research, and assistant director for education at the Morningside Academy for Design (MAD); J. Roc Jih, associate professor of practice in architectural design; John Ochsendorf, MIT Class of 1942 Professor with dual appointments in the Architecture and Civil and Environmental Engineering departments, and the founding director of MAD; and Brandon Clifford, associate professor of architecture. The group collaborated closely with Cody Paige, director of the Space Exploration Initiative within the Media Lab, along with her associates, emphasizing their effort to “keep things very minimal, very simple, because at the end of the day,” Fernandez illustrates, “we aimed to create a design that showcases the researchers and the mission.”
“This project emerged from the Space Architecture class we co-instructed alongside Cody Paige and astronaut and MIT AeroAstro [Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics] faculty member Jeff Hoffman” during the fall semester, elaborates Tibbits. “Mateo participated in that studio, and from that point, Cody invited us to develop the mission control initiative. We subsequently brought Mateo onboard, along with Simon, Nebyu, and the rest of the project team.” Tibbits adds, “this endeavor embodies MIT’s mind-and-hand philosophy. We engaged designers, architects, artists, computational professionals, and engineers working collectively, reflecting the polymath vision — balancing creativity with technical skills to bring this to fruition.”
Luna was funded and guided by Tibbits and Jih’s Professor Amar G. Bose Research Grant Program. “J. Jih and I were conducting studies for the Bose grant focusing on basalt and mono-material construction,” notes Tibbits, indicating that they “had examined foamed glass substances akin to pumice or foamed basalt, which also bear similarities to lunar regolith.” “FOAMGLAS is generally utilized for insulation, yet it possesses various applications, including direct ground contact and exterior walls, equipped with robust acoustic and thermal properties,” Jih remarks. “We assisted Mateo in comprehending how the material functions in contemporary architecture, and how it could be applied within this initiative, aligning with our research on innovative material combinations and mono-material construction methodologies.”
Additional financial support was provided by Inploration, a project led by creative director, author, and curator Lawrence Azerrad, alongside expeditionary artist, curator, and analog astronaut artist Richelle Ellis, and Comcast, a member company of the Media Lab. It also received backing from the MIT Morningside Academy for Design through Fernandez’s Design Fellowship. Contributions from industry collaborators included Owens Corning (construction materials), Bose (communications), as well as MIT Media Lab member companies Dell Technologies (operational hardware) and Steelcase (furnishings for operations).
A moon on Earth
Although the lunar mission concluded prematurely, the team asserts it succeeded in the design and realization of a control room that encapsulates MIT’s design philosophy and its ability to explore emerging technologies whilst preserving simplicity. Luna resembles variations of the moon, providing distinct views of either the moon’s spherical or crescent shape, contingent upon the observer’s vantage point.
“What stands out is how closely the final product aligns with Mateo’s initial sketches and renderings,” Tibbits observes. “That’s often not the case — where the ultimate constructed project corresponds so accurately with the original design intent.”
Luna’s entire framework is constructed from FOAMGLAS, a resilient material made of glass cells typically utilized for insulation. “FOAMGLAS presents as a captivating material,” remarks Lesina Debiasi, who assisted with fabrication tasks, ensuring a swift and secure process. “It’s relatively robust and lightweight, but can easily be shattered when subjected to a sharp edge or blade, necessitating that every phase of the fabrication method — cutting, texturing, sealing — is meticulously regulated.”
Fernandez, whose design philosophy was shaped by the notion that “simple actions” yield the most significant impact, elucidates: “We are breathing new life into materials overlooked for construction … and I believe that’s an impactful concept. Here, there is no requirement for wood, concrete, or rebar — construction can be accomplished using solely one material.” While the interior of the dome-shaped structure is smooth, the exterior was manually textured to mimic the basalt-like terrain of the moon.
The lightweight cellular glass, partially sponsored by Owens Corning, represents an unconventional choice for a compression structure — a variant of architectural design where stability is attained through the natural force of compression, typically implying the use of heavy materials. The control room does not rely on connections or additional supports and depends instead on the exact placement, dimensions, and weight of individual blocks to establish a stable form from a series of arches.
“Conventional compression frameworks depend on their own weight for stability, but utilizing a material that is over ten times lighter
than masonry indicated we had to reevaluate everything. It was about discovering the ideal equilibrium between design ambition and structural solidity,” contemplates Haile, who oversaw the structural assessments for the dome and its framework.
Compression depends on gravity and would not be a feasible construction technique on the moon itself. “We’re constructing using physics, loads, frameworks, and balance to create something that resembles the moon, but relies on Earth’s forces for its construction. I believe people overlook this at first, yet there’s something playful and ironic about it,” shares Fernandez, recognizing that the venture combines historical construction techniques with modern design.
The site and function of Luna — serving both as a workspace and an installation to engage the public — necessitated balancing privacy and visibility to ensure effectiveness. “One of the most crucial design aspects that embodied this vision was the openness of the dome,” notes Haile. “From the outset, we collaborated closely to find the right balance — tweaking the angle and dimensions of the opening to create an inviting atmosphere while still providing some seclusion for those working within.”
The strength of teamwork
With the FOAMGLAS substance, the team had to develop a fabrication technique that would realize the initial vision while preserving structural strength. Procured a material possessing greatly different characteristics compared to traditional construction implied working together intensively on the engineering front, as the lightweight quality of the cellular glass necessitated inventive problem-solving: “What looks flawless in digital models doesn’t always carry over effortlessly into reality,” says Haile. “The slope, curves, and overall shape directly influence whether the dome will remain standing, requiring Mateo and me to collaborate seamlessly from the very beginning until the completion of construction.” While the engineering efforts were mainly led by Haile and Ochsendorf, the structural design received formal evaluation and approval from Paul Kassabian at Simpson Gumpertz and Heger (SGH), ensuring adherence to engineering standards and building regulations.
“None of us had experience with FOAMGLAS previously, and we needed to discover the best methods to cut, texture, and seal it,” states Lesina Debiasi. “Given that each row comprises a unique block shape and specific angles, maintaining precision and consistency across all the blocks became a significant challenge. Since we had to cut each individual block four times before we could groove and texture the surface, establishing a secure production process and minimizing dust dispersion was vital,” he elaborates. “Working inside a tent, using personal protective gear like masks, visors, suits, and gloves made it feasible to work for extended durations with this material.”
Moreover, manufacturing introduced minor discrepancies that could jeopardize the structural soundness of the dome, prompting hands-on trials. “The control room consists of 12 arches,” describes Fernandez. “When one of the arches closes, it becomes stable, enabling you to advance to the next one … Moving from side to side, you meet at the center and close the arch using a specific block — a keystone, which was custom cut,” he explains. “In discussions with our advisors, we decided to account for irregularities in the final keystone of each row. Once this tailored keystone was in place, the forces would stabilize the arch and secure it,” adds Lesina Debiasi.
“This project showcased the finest practices of engineers and architects collaborating closely from the design initiation to the finalization — something that was historically commonplace but is less prevalent today,” remarks Haile. “This partnership was not merely essential — it ultimately enhanced the final outcome.”
Fernandez, who receives support this year from the MAD Design Fellowship, conveyed how “the fellowship provided [him] with the liberty to pursue [his] interests and also maintain [his] independence.”
“In a way, this project exemplifies what design education at MIT should encompass,” reflects Tibbits. “We’re constructing at full scale, contending with real-world limitations, experimenting at the frontiers of our understanding — design, computation, engineering, and science. It’s practical, highly experimental, and profoundly collaborative, which is precisely what we aspire for MAD, and MIT’s design education more broadly.”
“Luna, our tangible lunar mission control, underscores the remarkable collaboration among the Media Lab, Architecture, and the School of Engineering to present our lunar mission to the world. We are democratizing access to space for everyone,” proclaims Dava Newman, Media Lab director and Apollo Professor of Astronautics.
A comprehensive list of contributors and sponsors can be found at the Morningside Academy of Design’s website.