After two failed attempts at having groups of scientists live in this entirely closed system—wherein they produced all of their own oxygen, food, etc.--the project became somewhat of a laughing stock of the scientific community (I like to think of it as the birth of reality TV…blech).
By 1994 all experiments were discontinued. For a while Columbia University adopted Biosphere 2 as an off-campus research center, but I was told there is no longer enough student interest to support the program. There is still some level of research being conducted at Biosphere 2, and the biomes are being maintained for visitor enjoyment. However, while there, I asked the tour guide if any future plans to revisit the experiment are planned, and he indicated quite emphatically that there is absolutely no interest in doing so. I find that quite disheartening. To pose a very pedestrian analogy, it’s like an episode from Gilligan’s Island. You know, the professor builds a helicopter out of bamboo and makes fuel out of coconuts and seaweed and they test it and it works. Then Gilligan trips over it and breaks it, and the plan is foiled. “Why don’t they just tie up Gilligan, build another one, and get off the damned island?” I would ask myself as a youngster (I was also curious about Ginger and Maryanne, but I’ll save that for another time and topic).
In any case, I think it’s great that an oil tycoon put up the money to fund an experiment that looked to a future where fossil fuels have been exhausted. I think that searching for possible ways to colonize other planets is exciting and necessary. But even if that is too much in the science fiction realm for some, they might still agree that there can be a lot learned about conservation and dealing with other Earth environmental problems in an atmosphere such as Biosphere 2. These pictures don’t begin to capture the awesome technology and ingenuity at Biosphere 2, so if you are ever in Tucson, I highly recommend you spend some time exploring this relic of the past.