Tech Insider posted a cool video of the floating city that French Architecht, Jaques Rogerie designed in the shape of a Manta Ray. He named it the City of Meriens, which translates to “City of Oceanites”. It was engineered for marine research and designed with an oceanic university city in mind. The structure measures 3,000 feet long, 1,650 feet wide, and is capable of housing 7,000 researchers, professors, and students. The floating city is completely sustainable, operating on renewable marine energy, with zero waste. The upper deck is lined with wind turbines.
The university on water is equipped with living quarters, classrooms, marine labs, and areas to relax. A lagoon in the shape of a manta ray’s tail was installed on the back of the Meriens to hold the Sea Orbiter, an underwater mobile research vessel that Rogerie put more than 30 years into designing. It is capable of housing a crew of 22 and will allow 24/7 observations of marine life. The underwater vessel serves as a laboratory, home, space simulator, multi media platform, and an all around underwater base for gathering important marine data.
According to Fondation Jaques Rougerie, Jacques Rougerie has successfully melded his two passions, the sea and architecture. His research and the structures he builds are based on a bionic architecture inspired by marine forms and a concern for sustainable development. He has built underwater habitats, laboratories, marine research centers, vessels with see-through hulls, sub-aquatic museums, and designed underwater villages, and structures to focus on the beauty and fragility of the sea and its major role in society.
Rougerie, inspired by the imaginary work of Jules Verne, adopted his motto: “Anything one man can imagine, other men can make real”.
