CORALPOD - a permanent Mars settlement built entirely from materials available on the planet's surface.
The protective shell uses a three-layer biological system — M.B.M. — combining Martian soil with water and ice as a frozen substrate,
a living cyanobacteria membrane, and an innermost mycelia layer that activates and grows once the pod reaches full pressure.

Each Coral Pod unit connects seven modules along a central corridor spine: crew quarters, primary laboratory with biolab and robotic arms,
medical unit, kitchen and auditorium, gym, workspace, and a variable Coral Pod Slot accepting additional pod units or robotic attachments.
Entry is through a regolith-shielded airlock housing four EVA suits.

The biological system is not passive. Cyanobacteria migrate toward optimal light and humidity conditions,
meaning their distribution across the shell directly influences where windows form, how rooms are oriented,
and how the settlement expands at urban scale. The mycelia interior shell doubles as a humidity regulation system,
fed continuously by the cyanobacteria layer above it.
Water filtration within the crew quarters module runs through a dedicated mycelia filtration system — water management is biological, not purely mechanical.

Deployment is phased and partially autonomous — robotic systems position pod units before crew arrival,
and the mycelia biological shielding matures during the unmanned phase.
The pod logic remains constant as the settlement scales from a research outpost to a district of thousands.

CORALPOD was awarded 1st Prize in Alternate Realities 3 - Mars Homes, competition.
Jury: Melodie Yashar, Yimeng Teng, Farzaneh Hadafi, Samer El Sayary
[CORALPOD]