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Apple's 'spaceship' campus gets shown in new renders

Apple's 'spaceship' campus gets shown in new renders

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Cupertino City Council has released a new set of renders and floor plans of the forthcoming Apple campus, giving locals and fanboys a glimpse of the company's future home just a couple of miles from Infinite Loop.

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Cupertino City Council has released a new set of renders and floor plans of the forthcoming Apple campus, giving locals and fanboys a glimpse of the company's future home just a couple of miles from One Infinite Loop. The new buildings are dominated by the enormous central ring — it's almost 1200 feet in diameter and was dubbed a "spaceship" by Steve Jobs when he first presented it to the council — with a landscaped, park-like space in the center. This landscaping is a key element of the design of the campus, with native trees including Redwoods, Ash, Maples, and Gums aimed to emulate the natural environment rather than the asphalt that currently dominates the area. Orchards of apples, apricots, plums, and cherries also play a key part of the design — possibly in reference to one of Jobs' earliest jobs tending apples on a farm. The green theme is continued with the ecologically friendly low-carbon power plant that provides electricity to the site.

The new development also contains an array research and development buildings, a fitness center, parking garages, and an underground auditorium. While the design is still working through the planning process, Cupertino Mayor Gilbert Wong said back in September that "there is no chance we are saying no." Work is expected to begin on the new campus in the new year, with Apple set to move in in 2015.

Update: A few of you have pointed out that the low-carbon plant isn't the only energy source on the campus — Apple's making the most of that gigantic roof, and has covered it in solar panels. These are expected to generate up to five megawatts of electricity, and add to Apple's green credentials — a desire that's also driven its solar farm in North Carolina. Thanks, tomhut and hannes_1961!