Project 01 • Agafay Plateau, Morocco • 2024

The Oasis Bunker

Underground desert house in Agafay

Desert residential project

Design Approach

Concept study • climate figures are illustrative design assumptions, not measured data

A desert house dug four meters into limestone so it can work with the climate instead of fighting it.

Agafay is not a gentle climate. The exposed rock heats quickly, the sun is hard and direct, and the air can feel dry enough to drain even the shade of its energy. In the hottest parts of the day, the ground surface can be close to fifty degrees, and the wind can carry that heat across the plateau with almost no relief. The house responds by moving the occupied rooms below the surface. The limestone beneath the site stays close to eighteen degrees, which means the interior is buffered from the intense daily swing above. The rooms are not cooled by machinery; they are protected by the earth itself. The roof cantilever is then tuned to local solar angles. In summer, it cuts the midday sun before it reaches the glazing line. In winter, the lower sun is allowed in, so the stone floor and the surrounding mass can collect warmth slowly and comfortably.

50°Cbare rock surface at noon

AtmiddayinAgafaytherockfeelslikeitisthrowingheatbackatyou.Theexposedlimestonecanclimbclosetofiftydegrees,andthehotwindmovingacrosstheplateaufeelslikeadryingoven.Anormalglasshouseherewouldbecomeamachinefordiscomfort,withnorealshadeandnothermalrest.

Plate 01 • The long concrete roof overhang shading the trench[Expand Plate]

18°Cstable limestone temperature

Thelivingspacesarepulleddownintothelimestonesotheysitoutsidethemostviolentpartofthedesertclimate.Onceyouarebelowthesurface,thewinddropsawayandthetemperaturestartstobehavedifferently.Themassbeneaththesitestaysclosetoeighteendegrees,whichisenoughtosmooththedailyswingfromharshsuntocoolereveningair.

Plate 02 • Diagram showing how the overhang blocks the high summer sun[Expand Plate]

15°Ccold evening air on the plateau

WhenthesunslipsbehindtheAtlas,Agafaychangescharacter.TheaircanbecomeascoldasawindynightinEssaouira,andtheopengroundlosesheatalmostinstantly.Thatiswhythewallsarethickandthemassisheavy:theyabsorbtheheatofthedayandreleaseitbackslowlywhentheroomsactuallyneedwarmth.

82°summer noon solar angle

Theroofoverhangisnotdecorative.Itissizedtotheangleofthesunatthislatitudesotheglasslinestaysshadedduringthehottesthoursofsummer.Inwinter,thelowersunisadmitted,lettingnaturallightandslowwarmthenterwithoutgivingtheinterioradirectmiddaybeating.

Plate 03 • Living space placed directly against the excavated earth wall[Expand Plate]