An ecosphere

Closed Ecological Systems (CES) are ecosystems that do not exchange matter with any part outside the system. Although the Earth itself clearly fits this definition, the term is most often used to describe much smaller manmade ecosystems. Such systems are scientifically interesting and can potentially serve as a life support system during space flights, at space stations or in submarines. Perhaps confusingly, a closed ecological system is not a closed system in the usual sense, because energy (especially light and heat) is able to enter and leave the system, provided matter does not. Image File history File links Ecosphere-samualpedrete. ... Image File history File links Ecosphere-samualpedrete. ... An Ecosphere is a glass enclosed, self-contained and self-sustaining closed ecosystem sold primarily as a gift. ... In ecology, an ecosystem is a community of organisms (plant, animal and other living organisms - also referred as biocenose) together with their environment (or biotope), functioning as a unit. ... Earth (often referred to as The Earth) is the third planet in the solar system in terms of distance from the Sun, and the fifth in order of size. ... This article is about life support systems for outer space or underwater. ... Currently, the most common technology for space transport is rocket propulsion, which expels matter to provide a net forward thrust. ... A space station is an artificial structure designed for humans to live on in outer space. ... USS Los Angeles A submarine is a specialized watercraft that can operate underwater. ... An Isolated system, is a physical system that does not interact with its surroundings. ...

In a closed ecological system, any waste products produced by one species must be used by at least one other species. If the purpose is to maintain a higher life form, such as a mouse or a human, waste products such as carbon dioxide, faeces and urine must eventually be converted into oxygen, food, and water. Feral mouse A mouse is a mammal that belongs to one of numerous species of small rodents in the genus Mus and various related genera of the family Muridæ (Old World Mice). ... Trinomial name Homo sapiens sapiens Linnaeus, 1758 Humans, or human beings, are biologically classified as bipedal primates belonging to the mammalian species Homo sapiens (Latin for wise man or thinking man) under the family Hominidae (the great apes). ... Carbon dioxide is an atmospheric gas comprised of one carbon and two oxygen atoms. ... Rabbit feces are usually 0. ... Urine is liquid waste excreted by the kidneys and is produced by the process of filtration. ... General Name, Symbol, Number oxygen, O, 8 Chemical series Nonmetals, chalcogens Group, Period, Block 16, 2, p Appearance colorless Atomic mass 15. ... Water (from the Old English waeter; c. ...

A closed ecological system must contain at least one autotrophic organism. While both chemotrophic and phototrophic organisms are plausible, almost all closed ecological systems to date are based on a phototroph such as green algae. An autotroph (in Greek eauton = self and trophe = nutrition) is an organism that produces organic compounds from carbon dioxide as a carbon source, using either light or reactions of inorganic chemical compounds as a source of energy. ... Chemotrophs are organisms that obtain food (and therefore energy) from breaking down chemicals in their environments. ... Phototrophs or photoautotrophs are photosynthetic algae, fungi, bacteria and cyanobacteria which build up carbon dioxide and water into organic cell materials using energy from sunlight. ... A seaweed (Laurencia) up close: the branches are multicellular and only about 1 mm thick. ...

History

List of major closed ecological systems

• Biosphere 2
• MELISSA
• BIOS-1
• BIOS-2
• BIOS-3

Biosphere 2 is a manmade closed ecological system in Oracle, Arizona built by Edward P. Bass, Space Biosphere Ventures and others. ... BIOS-3 was a closed ecosystem at the Institute of Biophysics in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, in what was then the Soviet Union. ...

Sources

• "Manmade Closed Ecological Systems." I. I. Gitelson, G. M. Lisovsky and R. D. MacElroy. Taylor & Francis (2003) ISBN 0415299985.