Biosphere 2 is an unprecedented, on-going ecological experiment, built as a laboratory for global ecology. It is a tightly sealed glass and steel structure on 3.14 Ocean system of Biosphere 2 [Permission granted by Biosphere 2 Center] acres near Oracle, Arizona in which scientists have created seven complete ecosystems or biomes that mirror those of Earth. These systems include a desert, a savanna, a marsh, a rainforest, an ocean, an area of intensive agriculture and a human habitat. B iosphere 2 is designed to last a century and hopefully will provide valuable information for research and education to help scientists better understand how the Earth operates. September 26, 1991 marked the beginning of Biosphere 2. Eight researchers or "biospherians" were sealed in this massive, airlock, enclosed ecological system. These five men and two women hailed from the United States, Germa ny, Mexico, England, Australia, and Nepal. This was a very exciting day for Space Biospheres Ventures (SBV) because they got to see their $250 million dollar dream design of the creation of the world's largest and most complex closed ecological research f acility become a very ingenious reality. While in the biosphere these eight researchers performed more than 60 projects studying various topics such as carbon dioxide, and oxygen cycles, soil composition, coral reef health and vitality, agricultural pest management, waste and water recycling, and more. Every two weeks, the biospherians sent the samples they collected through the airlock to scientific consultants. Biosphere 2 [Permission granted by Biosphere 2 Center] The Biosphere 2 project was organized "as a private, venture endeavor to promote research and develop inventions and techniques with a wide range of applications from environmental engineering and clean-up the agriculture a nd life-support systems. Biosphere 2 was designed for 3 main purposes: research, education, and the development of environmental technologies for use on Earth and in outer space. Biosphere 2 is a new type of laboratory that combines state-of-the-art archi tecture and mechanical and computer monitoring systems with a wide range of living ecosystems. The Biosphere 2 structure covers the size of about 3 football fields, its volume is seven million cubic feet, and it stretches 91 feet into the sky. Its steel/glass substructure is designed to be leak-free and airtight. All air, water, and nutrient cycles are completely closed and recycled within the system. The monitoring of climate, soils, water, and air within Biosphere 2 are detected by over 1,000 sensors distributed throughout the Biosphere. Biosphere 2 is not large en ough for weather processes to occur entirely naturally as they do on Earth. Mechanical systems assist in heating, cooling, and air and water circulation. One of the most striking accomplishments for Biosphere 2 is its massive recycling systems. Crewmember s have used the same water and recycled all waste products inside Biosphere since 1991. Biosphere 2 is a good example and probable model for the countries involved in creating the International Space Station. Biosphere 2 shows that generating a self-sustaining closed system isn't impossible.