Can Science and Technology Create Sustainable Underwater Cities of the Future?

[Reflector]

Will science and technology someday allow really highly developed ocean cities with an underwater sector with lights illuminating and stuff and an above water sector where you travel on say flying scooters. Fast speed trains could connect the cities. I guess right now the constraints are economic and scientific... underwater drive-in! You travel slower in the ocean... I would really like to contribute to scientific knowledge if this could be done.

 

[DarkAnt]

I could see a small version of this happening because the ocean floor is rich in resources and small base would be an easy way of extracting those resources. Cities would only show up if overpopulation became a huge issue. Thats my take on it anyway.

 

[Entropy]

That would be pretty neat. Making under water cities like in Civilazation: CTP. Anyone played that?

 

[chroot]

Maintaining a small pocket of breathable air at ~1 atm at the bottom of the ocean is a hugely challenging endeavor. The technology to maintain a pocket the size of a city is probably hundreds or thousands of years away still.

Maintaining a pocket of pressurized air at the bottom of the ocean is considerably easier, though still no small feat. Unfortunately, human physiology does not seem to respond well to long exposures to those kinds of gas pressures. High-pressure nervous syndrome, bone decalcification, and other problems arise.

- Warren