Image Courtesy of Robert Flottemesch. (Click for slideshow)

The plan’s renewable energy components have received much consideration, but the more ornamental aspects of the design truly command special attention, given their incredible complexity. While Lunar Cubit helps to usher in a new age of energy design, it would simultaneously be tracking the passage of time as it does so. An algorithmic computer program would calculate the movement of the moon and manage the changing illumination of the pyramids according to the position of the moon in the night sky at any particular time. This way, visitors would be able to determine the moon’s location even on a cloudy night. A different pyramid is illuminated with each lunar phase.
The hope now is for the publicity generated from the competition to translate into funding for Lunar Cubit’s eventual fabrication. Expressing the on-paper proposal in physical form is estimated to require approximately $23 million and could most likely be carried out over two years of construction. The Initiative’s organizers also hope to secure financial backing for the other finalists so that each of the three sites targeted for the competition may ultimately serve as the location for a piece of genuine land art. As previously reported by PLANET, there was no shortage of talent in the running this year – simply see the entries “Prism Cloud” and “Light Sanctuary” as examples.