don davis-space painter

Towers of Ilium incorrectly  gave credit to Syd Mead for a painting done by Don Davis--an artist and futurist who lives and works on the West Coast. In no small measure his illustrations of space scenes have created a visual link between our planet and the universe around us.

He also has an interesting essay on the viability of space colonies. He makes the point that it is easier to create satellite colonies than to terraform existing planets. I tend to agree with that, to the extent that they are both nearly impossible, the former is more viable.

Human habitats in space constitute the most expensive and technologically intensive architecture humans have ever produced. I wouldn't be surprised if the cubic foot cost of the International Space Station exceeds the most expensive Earthbound building by a factor of 100.