Abstract
IT seems that it may be economically feasible, within the limits of the technology of this decade, to establish at one of the Lagrange libration points of the Earth-Moon system (called here L5) a habitat capable of supporting and maintaining some 10,000 people. Projections indicate that this habitat, using free solar energy and the rich mineral resources of the lunar surface, could construct a still larger habitat, in a progression leading, possibly within 30 yr from now, to communities of from 105 to 107 people. These communities could be as comfortable as the most desirable parts of the Earth, with natural sunshine, controlled weater, normal air, apparent gravity and complete freedom from pollution. Replication of these communities could lead to the exponential growth of new land area, with a growth rate more rapid than that of the total human population. A technically possible time-development is shown in Fig. 1, not as a prediction but as an illustration of the power of the technique.
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O'NEILL, G. A Lagrangian community?. Nature 250, 636 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1038/250636a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/250636a0
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