NASA imagined what humanity in space would look like back in the 1970s and it looks a lot like what we see in film today. Each of these concepts are approximately the size of a Californian beach town, and are self-contained habitats with artificial gravity, artificial weather, and are imagined in three types of colony: toroidal (donut shaped), sphere, and cylinder.

Toroidal – Population 10,000–140,000


Toroidal cutaway


Toroidal interior


Toroidal under construction


Another Toroidal model


Bernal Spheres – Population 10,000–30,000


Bernal Sphere interior


Bernal Sphere cutaway


Bernal Sphere agricultural model


Bernal Sphere under construction


Bernal Sphere model


Cylindrical Colonies – Population: Over One Million


Cylinder Interior


Cylinder – View from one end


Cylinder during solar eclipse