The Futureproof Series.
Postcards
From the Future.
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Futureproof Series
Postcards From the Future
As part of designbivouac’s Futureproof Series, this collection offers a set of visual explorations and concise narratives designed to spark conversation, challenge assumptions, and inspire strategic thinking about what lies ahead.
“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.”
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Methodology
Futurecasting is a creative process where designers explore various social, cultural, economic, political, and ecological factors to envision potential futures. Rather than predicting the future with certainty, futurecasting focuses on imagining possible and preferable scenarios that inform long-term strategies. It helps businesses understand the forces shaping the future, anticipate changes, and create proactive strategies. Preferable futures align technology with human needs while ensuring sustainability from a planetary perspective.
“The best way to predict the future is to design it.”
Frameworks
The Futureproof: Postcards From the Future series draws on frameworks, such as Joseph Voros’s Futures Cone and backcasting, to guide its exploration. By working backward from a desirable future state to our current reality, backcasting helps identify the necessary conditions to achieve a preferred vision. The aim is to encourage thoughtful consideration of our shared future and inspire active participation in shaping it.
Visual and Narrative Approach
The series' visual approach integrates AI tools into the creative process, blending visuals with written narratives that evolve organically as each postcard from the future takes form. The series is designed to inspire deeper reflection on the necessary actions to make our collective preferred future a reality.
Futureproof: Angel's Lace Clears Space Debris
Since the dawn of the space age, humans have polluted the space surrounding Earth. Decades ago, international space agencies recognized the importance of clearing space debris from Earth’s orbit. Today, Weyland Aerospace Group’s space debris capture mesh, or “Angel’s Lace,” is slowly clearing the planet of space debris. Thankfully, progress is being made in concert with other collection systems, clearing the way for future human exploration.
Future Narrative
Since the dawn of the space age, humans have polluted the space surrounding Earth. Decades ago, international space agencies recognized the importance of clearing space debris from Earth’s orbit. Today, Weyland Aerospace Group’s space debris capture mesh, also known as “Angel’s Lace,” is slowly clearing the planet of space debris. Thankfully, progress is being made in concert with other collection systems, clearing the way for future human exploration.
Weyland’s Angel’s Lace system includes an array of microsatellites called Spoolers. These microsatellites are nuclear-powered, equipped with six-way maneuvering thrusters and a mechanical means of spooling out and latching onto the system’s fine carbon-metallic capture mesh. Upon reaching a set orbit, the capture mesh deploys over a 16-square-mile area. Spoolers keep the mesh in relative tension as space debris is captured. The fine mesh is magnetized to increase the efficiency of collecting small metallic objects.
The capture mesh slowly collapses as more space debris accumulates. Upon capturing a significant amount of space debris, the capture mesh is maneuvered into an Earth-facing orientation and brought back into tension by Spoolers positioned along the periphery of the mesh. Debris ejects into a retrograde orbit destined to burn safely in the Earth’s atmosphere. The spooler craft then repositions the capture mesh in tension, and the process of capturing more space debris begins again.
Weyland Aerospace Group’s “Angel’s Lace” system collects space debris across a 16-square-mile area. Once captured, the debris is directed toward and ejected into a retrograde orbit, where it burns up in the Earth’s atmosphere.
Weyland “Spooler” microsatellites deploy and maintain the system’s capture mesh positioning. Spoolers comprise multidirectional nuclear thrusters, optical and positional sensors, and capture mesh management hardware.
Implications
Without systems like Angel’s Lace in operation, the human race was on a path toward being imprisoned on Earth by its ingenuity and desire to explore the universe. With each year's improvements in spacecraft design, combined with the operation of Angel’s Lace and other large space debris systems, the amount of space debris orbiting Earth is declining significantly, ensuring safe access to space for the next generation of explorers.
Signs and Signals
Astroscale: Cleaning up Space Junk for a More Sustainable Future
Futureproof is a series of occasional provocations illustrating possible future paths for technology and culture. Think postcards from the future.
Futureproof: Autonomous Undersea Resource Explorer
Thanks to the new fleet of autonomous undersea resource explorers, we’ve found ten times more lithium and other rare minerals for use in electric vehicles. We’ve analyzed far more ocean floor per week than we ever could using the old system.
Future Narrative
Thanks to our new fleet of autonomous undersea resource explorers, we’ve found ten times more lithium and other rare minerals for use in electric vehicles. We’ve analyzed far more of the ocean floor per week than we ever could using the old system. It is impressive how well the 20 units follow a detailed grid search pattern. At this rate, we will have paid for the entire system within two years and helped migrate away from fossil fuel-burning engines.
Technology
Autonomous grid-following technology is made possible by consumer-grade ultra-low frequency GPS broadcasting.
Solid aluminum fuel combines with filtered seawater to produce hydrogen for the system’s fuel cell.
Implications
New fuels can provide remote, autonomous systems with long-lasting power, ensuring reliable operation.
Largely unexplored seabeds are expected to yield more precious metals and minerals, which are needed to meet the demands of new industries in the coming decades.
Early Signals of Possibility
Learn more about aluminum as a possible fuel cell fuel via this MIT news article.
Wired article on the potential and dangers of deep-sea mining. www.wired.com/story/deep-sea-mining-electric-vehicle-battery/
Futureproof is a series of occasional provocations illustrating possible future paths for technology and culture. Think postcards from the future.
Futureproof: USGS Monitor
Future USGS locations may be supplemented with Monitor technology that collects data related to weather, vegetation conditions, wildfire management, wildlife migration, and more.
Future Narrative
On a recent cross-country motorcycle trip, I stopped north of Moab, Utah, to bivouac for an evening. The dry creekbed and a nearby rock formation protected me from the gentle overnight breeze. I took a short hike at sunrise and came across one of those new USGS markers with a solar-powered camera Monitor kit anchored next to it. I scanned the badge to access the viewpoint later. It was strange to have felt so alone and isolated the evening before, only to discover a Monitor station a quarter of a mile away. It is beneficial that these resources are available for those who need assistance. I can also view the camera feed from this location remotely, which is excellent as it is now one of my favorite bivouacking sites. Still, I wonder what it takes to get off the grid for a while.
Technology
AI-enabled, solar-powered image monitoring for fire prevention, weather forecast augmentation, vegetation monitoring, and remote assistance services
Implications
With new off-grid support infrastructure in place, what does getting away from it all mean?
How might this seldom-seen support network impact the human spirit?
How might USGS Monitor technology save lives and communities as we see more significant weather and wildfire events?
Futureproof is a series of occasional provocations illustrating possible future paths for technology and culture. Think postcards from the future.