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History of Biosphere 2

nytimes.com

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Re: History of Biosphere 2

#11

Post by alamortsubite »

nobody_nowhere wrote: post #4

I toured the facility around 2005-6 (iirc). Looks like you still can. It had a futuristic and lightly post-apocalyptic vibe. The jungle plants were growing out of control, pressing up against the glass panes of one of the habitats. Ants streamed in and out from the desert outside through a crack in a glass panel. If you check it out ( http://biosphere2.org/visit/tour-schedule-hours ), you can have a full post-apocaly…

Any post-apocalyptic vacation in that area should also include a tour of the dendrochronology lab at the University of Arizona. Also Kartchner Caverns, if you're willing to drive a bit further than the Titan Missile Museum.

Re: History of Biosphere 2

#12

Post by jayess »

nobody_nowhere wrote: post #4

I toured the facility around 2005-6 (iirc). Looks like you still can. It had a futuristic and lightly post-apocalyptic vibe. The jungle plants were growing out of control, pressing up against the glass panes of one of the habitats. Ants streamed in and out from the desert outside through a crack in a glass panel. If you check it out ( http://biosphere2.org/visit/tour-schedule-hours ), you can have a full post-apocaly…

I highly recommend the ICBM museum in Tuscon. They go through the entire launch process for the tour. It takes less than a minute. It's quite something to imagine that within that short period, the end of civilization would be guaranteed.

Re: History of Biosphere 2

#13

Post by awakeasleep »

ajay-d wrote: post #8

Where'd the cockroaches come from? Presumably from the outside?

Hell i’d read an article analyzing exactly what role they played in the biospheres ecosystem.

The article implies they’re bad, prima facie. If you want to be “scientific” then lets address exactly what they were contributing and hurting.

Was biosphere 2 designed to account for an insect food chain? Was it designed to account for all the types of waste cockroaches eat?

The more I think about it the less i feel like the cockroaches were the result of a “failure” and the more I think they're actually the data that should be considered a result of the experiment!

Re: History of Biosphere 2

#14

Post by pram »

I took a tour of Biosphere 2 when I was young. I remember the guide talking about two specific problems they didn't anticipate that dramatically altered the outcome of the experiment:

The 'domes' are supported by a metal lattice framework. That structure actually blocked too much sun and created extra shade which affected the plant growth.

The concrete used in the construction was sucking up carbon dioxide and changing the environment unexpectedly. That also reduced plant growth.

I really don't believe the entire thing was useless. It wasn't successful, but it failed in many interesting ways ;P

Re: History of Biosphere 2

#15

Post by stronglikedan »

noxToken wrote: post #9
RickJWagner wrote: post #3

It would make for a great sci-fi movie plot. Or another round of similar experiments. Or both.

Under the Dome is both a book (Stephen King) turned network drama (CBS) that ran for 3 seasons. Not quite the same as Biosphere or Biodome, but people are trapped under a dome.

Also, The Simpsons Movie. ;-)

Re: History of Biosphere 2

#16

Post by jedberg »

pram wrote: post #14

I took a tour of Biosphere 2 when I was young. I remember the guide talking about two specific problems they didn't anticipate that dramatically altered the outcome of the experiment: The 'domes' are supported by a metal lattice framework. That structure actually blocked too much sun and created extra shade which affected the plant growth. The concrete used in the construction was sucking up carbon dioxide and changi…

My favorite failure mode was that the trees started to fall over under their own weight when they got too tall, because there was no wind inside the dome. As they learned, wind is essential for trees because they must grow stronger trunks in reaction to the wind, and the wind helps blow off parts of the tree that aren't strong enough.

Re: History of Biosphere 2

#17

Post by maxxxxx »

pram wrote: post #14

I took a tour of Biosphere 2 when I was young. I remember the guide talking about two specific problems they didn't anticipate that dramatically altered the outcome of the experiment: The 'domes' are supported by a metal lattice framework. That structure actually blocked too much sun and created extra shade which affected the plant growth. The concrete used in the construction was sucking up carbon dioxide and changi…

This just shows that we have to do a lot of tedious testing before there is a chance to go to Mars. Even pretty innocent looking things can cause huge problems that can’t be anticipated beforehand

Re: History of Biosphere 2

#18

Post by jedberg »

bluedino wrote: post #5
RickJWagner wrote: post #3

It would make for a great sci-fi movie plot. Or another round of similar experiments. Or both.

Pauly Shore and Stephen Baldwin did a comedy called 'Bio-Dome' in 1996. The two slackers get trapped in there or something, I can't remember the little bit of plot that there was.

That was the whole plot. Two slackers get trapped inside with a bunch of scientists, so they have to make food for the slackers who just want to screw around, and in the end the slackers teach the scientists a thing or two about life. One of Pauly Shore's best works. Also it gave us this amazing video of the Safety Dance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVdP8bQ94XY

Re: History of Biosphere 2

#19

Post by jedberg »

I remember when this was big news. Mars colonization was big in the late 80s/early 90s, as it was "the next step" now that we had the Space Shuttle. This experiment was supposed to show us the way.

I think it's failure actually helped a lot, showing us that we just weren't ready to colonize Mars yet.

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