Photos: Coming home to a dome

Pacific Domes in Ashland, Ore., sells kits for geodesic domes that can serve as family dwellings, guest houses, greenhouses or playground equipment. They are also used as temporary enclosures at events and trades shows.

Pacific Domes rents domes for special events. The domes provide a built-in media projection screen and natural acoustics.

Geodesic domes can be open to natural light, creating a sense of being closer to nature.

With a swimming pool, this geodesic dome is on the fancier side.

Pacific Domes' structures are engineered with steel frames that can withstand heavy snow, hurricane winds--and big crowds.

Several geodesic domes served as game venues at Microsoft's Zero Hour launch event for the Xbox 360, which took place in the Mojave Desert in November.