Adaptable Surroundings:
The World of Noxlux
Watercolors & Story by Dan Taylor
Effective architectural design must take cues from the land it inhabits. As it adapts to its surroundings, it can develop itself into more refined and sophisticated versions, as long as it continues to address the challenges posed by its site.
A striking example of this principle is evident in the architecture of a civilization that thrives on a distant planet known as Noxlux. The planet's surface, situated directly beneath the moon's orbit, resembles a vast, flat, sandy desert adorned with majestic quartz crystals dotted sporadically across the plains. This expansive desert terrain, covering approximately one-third of the central circumference, owes its existence to the nightly erosion caused by the planet's ocean.
Noxlux's defining feature is its colossal moon, positioned akin to Earth's moon but three times larger. This astronomical phenomenon results in Noxlux's singular ocean being swept across the planet's surface. Structures on this extraterrestrial landscape are constructed on dry land but must accommodate the recurring inundation of water manifesting every 37 hours (the duration of a Noxluxian lunar day).