Designer Jorge Mañes Rubio Proposes 3D-Printed Moon Temple for Base Alpha

European designer Jorge Mañes Rubio has proposed robotically 3D printing a colossal domed Moon Temple as a cultural centerpiece for Moon Base Alpha on the lunar South Pole. The cosmic citadel aims to unite spacefarers from around the world and foster a new universal civilization during the burgeoning second space race.

As international space agencies turn their sights toward the lunar South Pole, visionary architecture is beginning to catch up with engineering logistics.

Designing a Cosmic Citadel for Moon Base Alpha

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The proposed Moon Temple is designed to sit at the heart of Moon Base Alpha, a master-planned astronaut base currently being pursued by NASA and the European Space Agency. Rubio’s vision stems from an epiphany he experienced while ensconced inside the European Space Agency’s leading-edge ACT think tank, which explores advances in technology, science, culture, and civilization.

Reflecting on the shifting dynamics of space exploration, Rubio contrasted the upcoming lunar efforts with historical precedent. The original space race was driven by competition between the superpowers, Rubio told Forbes in an interview. Now, with a wave of independent space outfits, national aerospace agencies, and explorers aiming for the Moon, he sees a chance to create a utopia.

Inside the temple, a cosmopolitan gathering of astronauts could theoretically meet to collectively map out a new cosmic culture. Rubio compares this gathering space to the agoras and temples of classical Greece, where citizens of Athens once met to co-design their democratic and cultural future.

Engineering a Lunar Temple in One-Sixth Gravity

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The structural demands of the Moon Temple dictate an architecture that would be entirely impossible to construct on Earth. Rubio points out that the colossal domed structure would instantly collapse under its own weight if built on our home planet. Only on the Moon, where mass generates a mere one-sixth of Earth’s gravity, could such a sweeping monument survive for centuries.

Laser-Printed Moon Base: How We'll Build on the Lunar Surface

The plans call for robotically 3D printing the structure, utilizing the unique physical environment of the lunar South Pole. The site itself is characterized by surreally illuminated terrain where certain peaks enjoy perpetual sunlight while nearby cavernous craters remain hidden in eternal shadows.

Architecturally, the temple features an immense arched oculus facing the horizon. This opening is precisely positioned so that Earth appears to float across the skyline before giving way, every two weeks, to a star-filled sky. This design concept shares aesthetic echoes with Skyspaces, a series of fantastical installations created around the world by American artist-architect James Turrell.

The Timeline for Lunar Settlement Under Jared Isaacman

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The broader push toward the lunar South Pole is rapidly accelerating under the guidance of Jared Isaacman, an independent space pilot selected to head up NASA during the second Moon race. Isaacman has outlined a timeline that places the first astronauts on the southern tip of the Moon in 2028.

Just a year later, in 2029, those astronauts will begin shaping a functioning base and assembling a habitat on the lunar surface. Isaacman earned his iconic status across the NewSpace sector by piloting two orbital missions, during which he tested experimental spacesuits developed by SpaceX alongside a specially adapted Dragon capsule to perform the world’s first spacewalk by an independent aeronaut.

Reflecting on the broader implications of these technological leaps, Isaacman previously noted that SpaceX’s EVA suits could serve as a stepping stone to the millions of spacesuits for the Moon and Mars travelers of the future. All technology demonstrations during his twin orbital missions were ultimately geared toward making humanity a multi-planetary species, with Isaacman expressing hope that the new space race will foster a more unified civilization.

Unifying a Multi-Planetary Species Across the Void

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Rubio shares that exact philosophical ambition, aiming to intermix the world’s populations into a pro-peace spacefaring super-culture, with the Moon Temple serving as a visual and cultural icon for that mission. He realized early in his ESA residency that space trekkers traveling more than 300,000 kilometers from Earth would fundamentally require a new cosmic vision to survive and unite on a floating orb.

Whether the Moon Temple transitions from blueprint to reality depends on the physical realization of Moon Base Alpha as scheduled through the late 2020s. Yet the proposal highlights an emerging cultural conversation within the NewSpace movement: that humanity’s return to the Moon will require not only advanced rockets and 3D-printing robots, but entirely new institutions to bridge the cultural divides of Earth.