Four men and four women were picked today to spend two years inside a two-acre sealed dome intended to be a microcosm of Earth. Known as Biosphere II, the giant terrarium aims for a December start. It will resemble a space colony tethered to Earth (Biosphere I) and serve as a prototype for sustaining life outside the Earth. The latter includes apartments and laboratory, office and recreational facilities. The crew's world inside will consist of seven ecological regions including a human habitat of apartments, laboratory, office, and recreational facilities. A team from the University of Arizona is scheduled to launch on Friday into orbit around Mars in an unmanned mission that could help scientists better understand how life might have evolved there.
Four men and four women were picked today to spend two years inside a two-acre sealed dome intended to be a microcosm of Earth. Known as Biosphere II, the giant terrarium aims for a December start. It will resemble a space colony tethered to Earth (Biosphere I) and serve as a prototype for sustaining life outside the Earth. The crew's world inside will consist of seven ecological regions including a human habitat of apartments, laboratory, office, and recreational facilities. A team from the University of Arizona is scheduled to launch on Friday into orbit around Mars in an unmanned mission that could help scientists better understand how life might have evolved there.