The Second Earth: Biosphere 2
Biosphere 2 was an experiment in the 1990s to research and develop self-sustaining space colonisation technology. Biosphere 2 is a sealed vivarium for all plants, nutrients and people needing to self-sustain. A company called Space Biosphere Ventures built a large complex called Biosphere 2, the complex was split into zones that included a desert, marsh, thorn scrub, rainforest, savannah and ocean.
Video: I Explored A $200,000,000 Forgotten Space Colony by Yes Theory
2 Year Experiment
There was an experiment that lasted for 2 years that involved eight crew members being locked in Biosphere 2. They had no outside help and had to survive on their own. The main goal of the experiment is to see if we can manufacture Earth’s ecosystem and maintain it elsewhere in the galaxy.
Lessons Learnt
During the experiment, the team suffered fluctuating CO2 levels, which most likely led to many animal species introduced into the ecosystem to die. However, they saw a rapid population growth of ants and cockroaches. Lots of crucial pollinating insects also died. The crew suffered from psychological strain being locked in a closed environment with others. The crew lost 16% of their body weight on average. They lacked farming skills but found their second year worth of crop yield was much better as they learnt and adapted. The experiment did highlight the complexities of the Earth’s ecosystem and to recreate it will be difficult.
What happened to biosphere 2?
The management company which owned Biosphere 2 was dissolved on 1st June 1994. The site and associated infrastructure were transferred to New York’s Columbia University as a campus and research site, where studies continued until 2003. The public can now visit Biosphere 2 and see the variety of different sections and see for themselves how the eight crew members lived during the 2-year experiment.