An Earthship is a style of architecture developed in the late 20th century to early 21st century by architect Michael Reynolds. Earthships are designed to behave as passive solar earth shelters made of both natural and upcycled materials such as earth-packed tires. Earthships may feature a variety of amenities and aesthetics, and are designed to withstand the extreme temperatures of a desert, managing to stay close to 70 °F (21 °C) regardless of outside weather conditions. Earthship communities were originally built in the desert of northern New Mexico, near the Rio Grande, and the style has spread to small pockets of communities around the globe, in some cases in spite of legal opposition to its construction and adoption.
South and East view of an Earthship passive solar home
Earthship Architecture, Taos, New Mexico
Earthship windows, water barrels, and solar panels
Michael Reynolds' first building, the "Thumb House", was built in the early 1970s. It included features incorporated into later Earthship designs.
An earth shelter, also called an earth house, earth bermed house, or underground house, is a structure with earth (soil) against the walls, on the roof, or that is entirely buried underground.
An earth sheltered house in Switzerland (Peter Vetsch)
Mandan lodge, North Dakota. c. 1908
"The interior of the hut of a Mandan Chief": aquatint by Karl Bodmer from the book "Maximilian, Prince of Wied's Travels in the Interior of North America, during the years 1832–1834"
Turf house in Sænautasel, Iceland.
