Self-Sustaining Tech: The Future of Life Support
Living in Circles: The Promise and Peril of Closed-Loop Life Support Systems Imagine a world where you can journey to Mars, live on the moon, or even build self-sustaining underwater cities. A world where humanity's footprint is minimal, leaving only gentle echoes on other planets and ecosystems. This vision isn't science fiction; it's the promise of closed-loop life support systems – intricate networks designed to mimic Earth's natural cycles, providing everything humans need to survive in environments far removed from our home planet. These systems are essentially self-contained biospheres, recycling resources like air, water, and even waste into usable components. Imagine a system where your exhaled carbon dioxide is converted back into breathable oxygen by algae, while your wastewater is...