This project absolutely blows my mind. It shows that there is no limit to what engineering can do when met with imagination.
We are struggling with so many nuances of living among each other on land. Yet the Italians believe they have figured out how to build an entire city that will exist on water. There are many aspects of this idea that are fascinating. The population on board will be easy to accommodate because they will undoubtedly be a very sophisticated and select few. There won’t be any crime. There will not be a shortage of resources, things to do and methods to solve any problems that may arise.
If this can be done on the ocean why can’t it be done on land?
CNN- In a time of economic crisis, what could be more outré than a superyacht? Why, a terayacht of course – a name given to vessels even bigger than super, mega and gigayachts.
The latest luxury boat to hit the market is Pangeos – named after Pangea, a supercontinent that existed from 200 million to 335 million years ago. And if those seem like big numbers, wait until you hear how many dollars it’ll take to construct it: $8 billion, according to designers Lazzarini.
Little wonder it’s so expensive when this, if funded, will become the largest floating structure ever built. Looking rather like a Bond villain’s lair, it’ll sprawl 550 meters (1,800 feet) long, and 610 meters (2,000 feet) wide.
There will be space for malls, apartment blocks and parks on the yacht.Lazzarini Design Studio
A full-on “floating city” according to Lazzarini, the yacht will have space for hotels, shopping malls, parks and even ports for smaller ships and aircraft to get guests there in style. And style there will be, given that it’s shaped like a tera-turtle.
It’d take a special place to build it, too – one that doesn’t currently exist. The designers have posited Saudi Arabia as a location. Around one square kilometer of sea would need to be dredged and a circular dam constructed before the build could commence. The designers have earmarked a space at King Abdullah Port, 81 miles north of Jeddah as the ideal location.
Solar panels would provide power while there’d be a rooftop landing space for aircraft.Lazzarini Design Studio
Divided into blocks like an actual city, Pangeos has a port and main square, off which other buildings spiral. An “upper shell” area, surrounded by garden spaces, would act as a landing spot for aircraft.
Below the living space would be 30,000 “cells” which would keep the structure afloat. The basement would be made of steel. It’d have a massive 30 meters, or 98 feet, of draft, and be able to cruise at a speed of five knots – although the “wings” would draw energy from the drag and waves breaking against the ship. The roof would have solar panels to power the yacht.
