Dive Brief:
Japanese construction company Shimizu Corp. has designed a city to be built in the ocean, with a giant sphere that would would house 5,000 people and bobble just above the water’s surface but connect to the sea’s floor via a nine-mile-long spiral anchor.
The transparent, watertight sphere would include homes, hotels, and commercial complexes. Other spheres could be built nearby.
The structure would take advantage of sunlight but would protectively submerge during foul weather. At the base of the spiral anchor, a research center for scientists would harness energy and mine materials from the ocean floor, supplying oxygen to the inhabitants and making the “property” self-sufficient.
Dive Insight:
The modern-day Atlantis sounds farfetched, but a Shimizu Corp. official told London’s The Guardian the project “is a real goal, not a pipe dream.” He reminded the reporter that the Japanese “Astro Boy” cartoon series that began in 1952 featured a robot with a mobile phone decades before cell phones were invented. “In the same way,” the official said, “the technology and know-how we need for this project will become available.”
He predicted the $25 billion project could be built by 2030.
