Cupolas have been used in architecture for centuries. They function like a skylight, but they normally have roofs with openings in the vertical walls that let in light from outside. The interior walls of the cupolas can be angled to bounce the light coming into them to the room below. Typically they are small in comparison with the spaces they illuminate and come in a variety of shapes.
At Seleneca, the use of the cupola features in the design for the courtyards of the buildings. In our case, the base of the cupola extends over the entire length and width of the courtyard. This is an effort to psychologically create the effect of a sky. The courtyard ceilings are either painted white or light blue to further that feeling and to bounce as much light around as possible. The sides of our cupolas slope upward to a smaller chamber that is filled with a special gel that acts as a radiation screen that lets the light pass through. Above that, there is a mirror on the outside at the Moon’s surface that reflects and directs the sunlight down into the chamber. The light from the chamber bounces of the sloped ceiling of the cupola.
