Biosphere Plans
Biosphere II is
a 139,935 square foot (3.15 acre) facility made of glass and spaceframe,
the largest total enclosed ecosystem ever built. All of the living things
inside were taken directly from Biosphere I. All seven ecosystems of Earth
exist within the confines of Biosphere II. They are a rainforest, a desert,
a savanah, a marsh, a farmland (in an area called the Intensive Agriculture
Biome), and a "human habitat". Thus, it contains soil, air, water, animals,
and plants. About 4,000 plants and animals were introduced to Biosphere
II, and the ocean contained 900,000 gallons of water. It was hoped that
these provisions would give the ecosystems enough material to be self-sustaining.
Image courtesy
of Jennifer German
The complete
facility, built in Oracle, Arizona, (in the middle of the Sonoran desert),
cost $200 million. Its purpose was to test the possibility of living in
like establishments on planets other than Earth.
Images courtesy
of Melanie Maguire
Take a photo
tour on a Biospherics
website.
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Biosphere II?] [Biosphere Plans]
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Went Wrong?][Lessons for the Future]
Contact WebMasters:
Erin
Walker and
Diana Carroll