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Comment by wayne | Hacker News Reader

I remember the Biosphere 2 project from the early 90s which was everywhere in the news but didn't work out.

"Biosphere 2 was only used twice for its original intended purposes as a closed-system experiment: once from 1991 to 1993, and the second time from March to September 1994. Both attempts, though heavily publicized, ran into problems including low amounts of food and oxygen, die-offs of many animals and plants included in the experiment (though this was anticipated since the project used a strategy of deliberately 'species-packing' anticipating losses as the biomes developed), group dynamic tensions among the resident crew, outside politics and a power struggle over management and direction of the project."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biosphere_2

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I actually think Biosphere 2 was quite successful. As an engineering project it failed, but in terms of research it provided a lot of useful data.

The core issue with the design was actually concrete absorbing Oxygen from the interior air. That’s exactly the kind of issue you want to consider if we ever want to actually make sustainable habitats. Unfortunately, they never tried to make a biosphere 3, but I suspect that would have been far less ambitious yet more successful.

I think it's criminal how little research is being done in this area. Sustainable, closed ecosystems are very likely to be key to humanity's future survival and are a prerequisite for leaving Earth on any kind of long term basis.

Have you watched spaceship earth, the biosphere 2 documentary? I remember learning about it in science class in middle school so it had an aire of legitimacy to it, but that story is nuts, including the fact that it was basically started by a cult with a billionaire best friend and Steve Bannon(yes, that one) being Director of the project for a while.

I visited there in 1999. After the original experiment failed, it ended up used by Columbia University for research and a friend of mine from high school was a student there. She and I drove all the way from LA to Oracle, AZ to pick up a friend of hers doing a summer course there, stayed a few days, and he came back to LA to spent the rest of the summer with us.

Years later, in the Army, I was struck by how similar the permanent living structures at the National Training Center are to those at Biosphere II. At least structurally. The students get real rooms whereas we got cots and tape on the floor. Another thing that struck me at NTC was how similar the landscape looked to any pictures I've ever seen of Mars. If NASA wants maximum fidelity, don't just put these people in a closed room, but do it underground in Death Valley.

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