FIELD BRIEF 01 · DV2026
Design Victoria 2026 · Family Workshop

Lunar
Design Life on the Moon — a design challenge for all ages.

Date
Sunday, May 3
Time
11:00 am – 2:00 pm
Venue
The Rotunda
Hosted By
ANCORD Design Co
Begin Brief
Image · NASA / Artemis II
Earthset over Ohm Crater, April 6 2026
00 / Mission Premise

You have been sent to the Moon. Not to visit. To live here, inside a sealed dome on the lunar surface. The vehicles that move you around it, the chairs you sit in, the bed you sleep on — none of it has been designed yet. That part is your job.

Two field briefs follow. MOVE is about transportation inside the dome. REST is about furniture for sitting, sleeping, and eating in low gravity. There is no right answer to either one. Sketch your idea on a worksheet, then build it from the materials on the table. Pin it to the wall when you're done.

Lunar Field Data

Gravity
1.62
m/s² · 16.6% Earth
Day Length
~14
Earth days each
Temperature
−173 / +127
°C · shadow / sun
Atmosphere
≈ 0
No air outside the dome
Surface
Regolith
Sharp, fine, charged dust
Distance
384,400
km from Earth
Sky
Black
Stars in daytime
Resupply
Months
Bring it or build it

Materials & Methods

Materials
What you have to work with
  • Aluminum and polymer brought from Earth
  • Regolith bricks made from lunar dust
  • Anything broken — reused, never thrown away
Hardware
What you can use to build
  • 3D printers, small and large
  • Robotic arms for heavy lifting
  • Solar power and batteries — no wall outlets
Methods
How things get made
  • Modular — snap together, take apart
  • Multi-purpose — one object, many uses
  • Repair before replacing
01 / Station Brief · Move
01

Move

Design something that moves a person — or supplies — from one part of the lunar dome to another. A vehicle. A walker. A way to carry. It can roll, hop, glide, stride, or do something we haven't tried.

Conditions Inside the Dome

  1. M · 01 Gravity is one-sixth of Earth's.A small step is a long jump. Wheels grip differently. Whatever starts moving keeps moving longer than you expect.
  2. M · 02 Space is shared.The dome is large, but every part of it shares the same air, power, and floor. People, supplies, and machines all move through the same space.
  3. M · 03 Materials are limited.Every kilogram had to be launched from Earth. Use what is here. Do not waste mass.
  4. M · 04 Modular and repairable wins.Parts that snap together, swap out, or get fixed with what's on hand are worth more than parts that look beautiful but break for good.
  5. M · 05 Quiet matters.Dozens of people share this dome. Loud is hard to live with for fourteen days of daylight straight.
02 / Station Brief · Rest
02

Rest

Design somewhere to rest your body — to sit, to sleep, or to eat. A piece of furniture. A nook. A whole quiet corner of the dome. The body's rules change when gravity is low.

Conditions of the Body

  1. R · 01 Low gravity changes how you settle.You don't sink into a mattress the same way. You don't always need a chair the way you do here. The body floats more, presses less.
  2. R · 02 The lunar day is fourteen Earth days long.So is the night. The body needs to know when to rest when the sun does not set on time.
  3. R · 03 Furniture must travel from Earth.Or be made on the Moon from what is already here. Either way, it should fold, stack, or pack flat.
  4. R · 04 Modular and repairable wins.You can't go to a store for a replacement. Furniture that comes apart, takes new parts, or grows over time matters more than furniture that's perfect once and never again.
  5. R · 05 Surfaces should clean easily.Anything that traps food crumbs or dust will become a problem. Smooth and washable beats fluffy and complicated.
03 / Method How Designers Work

Real design begins the same way. Understand the conditions. Sketch fast. Build it. Look at it. Change what does not work. Industrial designers spend most of their time not making things look good — they spend it making things actually work for the people and the place they are made for.

When you finish, pin your design to the wall. Sign it. We'll photograph the work that comes off the table today and share it after the festival.

04 / Logistics Find Us
When
Sunday, May 3
11 am – 2 pm
Drop in any time. The activity scales from a quick sketch to a full prototype build, depending on how long you want to stay.
Where
The Rotunda
Design Victoria 2026
Look for the two ANCORD tables in the centre of the room and the aluminum-framed pin-up wall behind us. designvictoria.ca ↗
Who
All Ages
Families Welcome
Designed for kids, but the briefs reward grown-ups who want to take a real run at it. Bring siblings, parents, anyone curious.