In a groundbreaking proposal, scientists have unveiled an ambitious plan to establish a storage facility on the Moon to preserve endangered animals.
This innovative plan would allow the country to have a sample of the most endangered animal species on Earth.
Additionally, the facility would keep animal samples in a super-cold environment, protecting them from Earth's problems, including natural disasters and climate change. Independent reported.
“They will be 'cryopreserved' to keep them in a useful state,” the scientists say.
A new paper, led by Mary Hagedorn of the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, suggests the lunar base could help protect endangered animals.
In addition, creating a storage facility on the lunar base would yield positive results, as temperatures there would remain below -196 degrees Celsius, so the facility would act as a refrigerator.
Keeping it on the Moon would mean there would be no need for human intervention or a continuous power source to keep the storage facility cool.
Scientists have already begun to demonstrate how this would work with samples of the starfish goby, a fish that will serve as an example and test.
However, there are some challenges that could affect the storage facility plan, including safely transporting the animal species through space and to the Moon, keeping them away from radiation, and bringing all countries together to work on securing the facility.
