Clouds Architecture Office, a New York-based architectural firm, has proposed an innovative skyscraper concept named the "Analemma Tower". This design envisions a building suspended from an asteroid that would be placed in geosynchronous orbit around Earth. The tower would hang upside down, tethered by high-strength cables to the orbiting asteroid, allowing it to hover above various locations on the planet.
As the asteroid follows its orbital path, the tower would move in a figure-eight pattern, providing residents with a unique, ever-changing view of the Earth below. This concept, while currently theoretical, explores the possibilities of combining space technology with architectural innovation.
According to the official website of Clouds Architecture Office, "Analemma Tower inverts the traditional diagram of an earth-based foundation, instead depending on a space-based supporting foundation from which the tower is suspended. This system is referred to as the Universal Orbital Support System (UOSS), which is based on the principles of a conventional space elevator."
Photo Credit: cloudsao.com
"By placing a large asteroid into orbit over Earth, a high-strength cable can be lowered towards the surface of Earth, from which a super tall tower can be suspended. Since this new tower typology is suspended in the air, it can be constructed anywhere in the world and transported to its final location. The proposal calls for Analemma to be constructed over Dubai, which has proven to be a specialist in tall building construction at one-fifth the cost of New York City construction."
According to Clouds Architecture Office, Analemma can be placed in an eccentric geosynchronous orbit which would allow it to travel between the northern and southern hemispheres on a daily loop. The ground trace for this pendulum tower would be a figure eight, where the tower would move at its slowest speed at the top and bottom of the figure eight, allowing the possibility for the tower's occupants to interface with the planet's surface at these points. The proposed orbit is calibrated so the slowest part of the tower's trajectory occurs over New York City.
Analemma would get its power from space-based solar panels. Installed above the dense and diffuse atmosphere, these panels would have constant exposure to sunlight, with a greater efficiency than conventional PV installations. Water would be filtered and recycled in a semi-closed loop system, replenished with condensate captured from clouds and rainwater. Developments in cable-less electromagnetic elevators have effectively shattered height restrictions imposed by elevator cable spool volume.
