Biosphere 2: the collapse of Dreams

Colonize another planet - be it Mars or the Moon, or Venus - a dream.
And that man was able to live there, should first make a closed cycle - a piece of the living Earth with at least a minimum set of the biosphere for the functioning of the ecosystem.
Embody these dreams in life someday? ..





In the early 90s, in the American desert of Arizona was vodvorёn enforce ambitious project, called "Biosphere 2" ("Biosphere 1" is our planet Earth). This artificially created closed Biosphere was the first large-scale attempt at modeling the processes occurring in the natural ecosystems of the Earth. According to the authors of the project, obtained in the course of the experiment the results would be very useful during long space flights.



Complex "greenhouses", completely isolated from the environment (even air) took about 1, 5 ha, the volume of the atmosphere "Biosphere 2" has made about 204 thousand. M3 of air. The giant "greenhouse" has been "concluded" about 3,000 species of animals and plants, as well as 8 representatives of Homo sapiens.



By "services" reasonable inhabitants of "Biosphere 2" were seven different biomes: rainforest, desert, savannah, ocean with a small coral reef and mangrove eustariem, agrocenosis in which the colonists were grown food (vegetables, fruit and cattle), as well as residential unit.



The species composition of living organisms was chosen to best simulate the biosphere cycle of substances, including the production and decomposition of organic matter, including the natural decomposition of human excreta.



Artificially recreate the Earth's biosphere was not so easy. The colonists faced many serious problems. One of the main problems was that the plants are not able to produce the required amount of oxygen.



The oxygen content in the atmosphere "Biosphere 2" fell from 21% to 15%, as a result had to pump oxygen from the external environment. For two years (1991 and 1993), artificial biosphere residents lived under constant oxygen starvation (anoxia similar experience climbers at an altitude of 4 km). Scientists suggest that a significant role in the increased oxygen consumption played soil microorganisms.



The second problem faced by the people - a shortage of food. Square agrocenosis "Biosphere 2" was not enough to provide eight people with sufficient food.



To solve this problem it was necessary to increase the density of sowing of grain, as well as land in the rainforest bananas and papayas.



The third problem, which considerably complicates the lives of people in isolated ecosystems - is the uncontrolled growth of pests. Food chains artificial ecosystem "Biosphere 2" turned out to be incomplete, and the number of pests in the absence of the enemy began to grow steadily.



In isolated from the external environment conditions "Biosphere 2" use of insecticides to combat pests unnecessarily, as self-purification processes in such small ecosystems are very slow, and it means that the poisoning chemicals all the inhabitants, including humans, will inevitable.



To solve this problem, the colonists had to manually collect the pests and their natural enemies to breed.



Biome Desert was short-lived. In the morning, the moisture condenses on the glass roof of the "Biosphere 2" and artificial rain was falling down. Shortly after the start of the experiment desert herd overgrown grass.



During the experiment, some problems were quite unexpected.



So the lack of wind has a detrimental effect on some types of woody vegetation.



In the absence of wind pressure on the trunk and branches of trees, mechanical tissue timber were not sufficiently developed.



As a result of the trunks and branches of trees became brittle and break under its own weight.



Since 1996, the "Biosphere 2" was administered by Columbia University, who went on to further studies.



But even without human intervention.
Some biomes research complex were available for tourists.



On one of the interior walls of "the world" is still preserved a few lines written by one of the women:
"But here we felt as dependent on the natural environment. If there are no trees - we have nothing to breathe, if the water is dirty - we have nothing to drink. "



January 10, 2005 the company-owner of a unique complex put up for sale the lab.
In the photo above - what is a "Biosphere 2" in 2010.



Source:
priroda.su
Additional materials:
wikipedia.org
paradox100cra
Photo by:
Noah Sheldon ©



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