An international group of scientists has proposed creating a biorepository on the Moon, a repository of DNA and cells, where samples of endangered terrestrial plant and animal species would be placed. According to the authors of the initiative, this will help save the most vulnerable organisms of our planet from various disasters. The research was published in the scientific journal magazine Bioscience.
The lunar repository the team describes would be out of reach of climate change, geopolitical events and other disasters. Experts say the Moon’s naturally cold environment would allow samples to be frozen year-round without the need for energy.
The researchers proposed placing the biorepository in deep craters near the polar regions, where sunlight cannot reach and temperatures remain around -196°C.
According to scientists’ calculations, in the future, preserved samples are expected to be used to breed new individuals of critically endangered species or, in the event of their complete extinction, to clone and create new creatures.
The creation of such a project would require significant costs, but the authors of the initiative believe that with the development of space travel and the exploration of the Moon, the construction of a DNA storage facility there will cease to be a fantasy.
Earlier scientists to create Traces of water in lunar soil samples.