Geodesic Domes

Geodesic Domes look like something out of science fiction and have often been used in TV shows and movies to give a "futuristic" feel. Despite this they are far from fiction, being almost a century old. They are today an established part of the architectural repertoire although they remain comparitively rare. They do however have many fans and you can buy plans and kits should you wish to make your own.

What Is A Geodesic Dome?

A geodesic dome is a dome-shaped structure, usually approximately hemi-spherical, formed from an interlocking set of basic geometric shapes. The arrangement of these shapes means that a collection of straight lines define the approximate outline of a hemisphere.

Even something as simple as a cube can be thought of as a very crude geodesic dome, with the six square faces providing an extremely rough approximation to a sphere. As the faces are made smaller, more numerous and their shapes changed the object approximates better to a sphere.

History

Buckminster Fuller

The invention of the geodesic dome is often credited to R. Buckminster Fuller and is probably his most famous "artifact". However the first known example comes from before Fuller's time.

In 1922 Walter Bauersfeld designed a planetarium for the roof of the Zeiss optical company in Jena, Germany. This was based on the interior of an icosasphere.

Fuller invented the idea independently in the 1950s. In 1954 his 42 foot cardboard dome received the highest prize at the Milan Triennal exhibition. In 1965 he received a US Patent on the concept. A spherical carbon allotrope molecule, C60, was later named buckminsterfullerene in his honour and the name fullerene came to be applied to all such allotropes. Spherical fullerenes are often called buckyballs.

Today there are many thousands of geodesic domes around the globe, some of the most famous being at the Eden Project in Cornwall.

Advantages and Disadvantages

The geodesic dome desgin allows a circular structure to be created from simple, straight componenets that are relatively easy and efficient to produce. In addition the structure is extremly strong whilst remaining light. It is able to cover more space without the use of internal struts than any other known design of enclosure. The geodesic dome also scales well - it actually gets more efficient as it gets larger.

Another advantage of the geodesic dome is ease of shipping and construction. The flat pieces are relatively simple to pack and assemble.

There are however drawbacks to the geodesic design, particularly in the area of home building. The circular structure itself is one that is difficult to utilise efficiently for living space since it necessarily creates sloping walls and ceilings. It can also be difficult to arrange for practicalities such as drainage and fire escapes that conform with the relevant building codes and standards.

These issues perhaps explain why geodesic domes remain more popular for exhibitions and temporary tents rather than permanent houses designed for day to day living.