Lagatar24 Desk
Washington, D.C.: Scientists have unveiled an ambitious plan to safeguard endangered species from potential catastrophic events on Earth by storing their DNA on the Moon. This concept, likened to a lunar “Noah’s Ark,” aims to provide a backup for biodiversity preservation in the unlikely event of species extinction on our planet.
The plan involves constructing a biorepository—a specialized facility on the Moon to house frozen biological materials. This facility would store live tissue samples from various animal species, ensuring their preservation if they were to become extinct on Earth.
The ideal locations for this biorepository are the Moon’s north or south poles, where craters remain in perpetual shadow and temperatures are consistently around -200 degrees Celsius. These extreme conditions make these regions perfect for long-term storage without the need for a power source.
A report published in the Oxford Academic journal BioScience suggests that establishing a lunar biorepository would complement existing Earth-based facilities, offering an additional layer of security for the preservation of biodiversity. NASA is also interested in these polar regions due to the presence of ice, which could support the establishment of human colonies.
Researchers from institutions such as Harvard and the Smithsonian are developing methods to collect, freeze, and transport samples from threatened species to the Moon. Protocols for this space storage initiative are being established, with the starry goby fish species serving as the first specimen.
One of the significant challenges involves managing the high radiation levels in orbit and ensuring the safety of the samples during spaceflight. While existing biorepositories, like the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway, are designed to withstand terrestrial threats, the Moon’s extreme cold provides a stable environment that might not require external power, making it an ideal location for this backup plan.
“A lunar biorepository would safeguard biodiversity and act as a hedge against its loss due to natural disasters, climate change, overpopulation, resource depletion, wars, socioeconomic threats, and other causes on Earth,” the scientists write in the report.
The initial focus of this initiative will be on cryopreserving animal skin samples with fibroblast cells, which can later be used to regenerate tissues.
This groundbreaking proposal highlights the innovative steps scientists are willing to take to ensure the survival of Earth’s endangered species, leveraging space technology to create a secure repository beyond our planet.
