(TheConservativeTimes.org) – There has been recognition that many different plants and animals are endangered and dying off on Earth, but a new solution could possibly change things. Scientists have been looking into outer space for a solution in a facility on the moon.
Referred to as a lunar biorepository, this facility would store plant and animal cells on the moon. Scientists have said that the moon is the perfect temperature for storing these. Mary Hagedorn, a senior research scientist said “There’s no place on Earth cold enough to do it.”
Hagedorn has rescued and replenished coral reefs in the ocean. She has worked with freezing cells before to keep them alive for hundreds of years, which is essentially what they plan to do here on the moon.
She said her inspiration is the Arctic Svalbard Seed Vault which is located in Norway. At the vault, they keep cells at under zero degrees, which is natural because of the permafrost. Hagedorn said, “Svalbard has done a really great job of saying, ‘OK, we need to preserve seeds. Everything on Earth depends on seeds. And how are we going to do that?'”
They have said that at the deepest parts of moon craters, the temperature reached negative three hundred degrees. Hagedorn and her team will first imitate conditions on Earth while following with a test run on the space station.
They have proposed that they include a variety of different species including coral, earthworms, pollinators, animals that live in extreme climates, and other species that support life such as zooplankton and mosses.
There are multiple challenges that they expect to face while performing this experiment on the moon; the center is looking into these potential issues as they begin preparation for a test in moon-like conditions done on Earth.
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