Biosphere 2
Visited
2017.11.12
Oracle, Arizona
Originally built to demonstrate the viability of closed ecological systems — the sort of thing humans would need for long-term colonization of outer space — Biosphere 2 (Earth being Biosphere 1) is an engineering marvel that nonetheless failed as an experiment in sustainability. Twice in the 1990s, human crews were sealed inside the structure, with both missions ending prematurely due to a host of internal and external issues.
After changing hands multiple times over the years, the Biosphere 2 facilities are now owned and operated by the University of Arizona, where they’ve found new purpose as a laboratory for land and water use in arid conditions.
I think what fascinates me about the place, is how it fits into my personal view of the American desert as a weird landscape where futures go to be realized, and ultimately die — the ideas in ruin, the shells that carried them rusted and repurposed, if not totally abandoned. In this case, the idea that we could build successful Earth analogs on other worlds and out amongst the stars. And now, in the skeleton of the thing, we’ve got scientists just trying to figure out how to make the best of the situation we’ve created for ourselves on Earth, in a deeply damaged and increasingly warming Biosphere 1.
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Lunar Greenhouse Habitat Module
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Mars Surface Habitat Diorama
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Leaving the Biosphere, for the Technosphere below.
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The Lung, a giant diaphragm that would control air pressure in the sealed biosphere, as the air heated and cooled under the glass.
