Living in Space - 1996 Strategies for Mars
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LIVING IN SPACE : RESUL TS FROM BIOSPHERE 2’S I NITIAL CLOSURE, AN EARLY TESTBED FOR CLOSED ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS ON MARS M. Nelson* and W. F. Dempster + * Institute of Ecotechnics, 24 Old Gloucester St., London WC1 3AL + EcoFrontiers, Rt. 2 Box 271, Santa Fe, NM 87505 During the design, construction and two year closure of Biosphere 2, Mark Nelson was Director of Environmental and Space Applications and Wil liam Dempster was Director of Systems Engineering for Space Biospheres V entures. Mark Nelson was a member of the eight person biospherian crew, 1991-1993. ABSTRACT On September 26, 1991 a crew of eight people passed through the airlock beginning an experimental habitation of Biosphere 2, a closed ecological system built in the Arizona desert north of Tucson. Two years later they emerged - somewhat thinner but against considerable odds in overall good h ealth and with a viable life supp ort system. The project marked the first long duration habitation by huma ns in a closed environmental system - and not surprisingly the first two years of its operation included a multitude of problems, including several which were unanticipated. The initial two year closure in Biosphere 2 revealed the sharp fluctuations in atmospheric cycling that will be expected in small closed systems because of its concentration of living biomass and small air volumes. CO2 during the two years ranged from under 1000 ppm to over 4000 ppm. Oxygen was depleted from the atmosphere by reactions with organic C in the systems’ soils, dropping from an initial 20.9% (ambient) to around 14% after 16 months of closure, when additional oxygen was inserted to avoid health risks. Food production supplied over 80% of the eight person crew’s nutrit ional needs and was strongly influenced by seasonally fluctuating light levels and unexpected insect problems. Lowered caloric intake with a nutritionally dense diet p roduced sharp drops in blood cholesterol and other health improvements previously seen in lab oratory trials of similar diets. The created ecosystems grew rapidly , with large increases in biomass evidenced in tree canopy development. Some ecosystem changes, particularly in the desert, were observed as the biomes developed. Wastewater treatment and water recycling was accomplished during the two year closure. The lessons from the Biosphere 2 experiments may prove valuable in preparation for the challenges of utilizing Martian resources and creating at first limited weight and volume life support systems and eventually permanen t habitation modules on Mars.
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