Southern Arizona is in the Desert...Right?

R-A-I-N!  We have gotten lots of rain here in Benson, AZ., so much in fact, we have started to question if we are actually in the desert.  Of course it had to rain on Monday and Tuesday, my days off.  But it takes more than rain to keep us down.

On Tuesday Bill and I, along with our friends Rich and Ronda, visited the Biosphere 2, outside of Tucson.   In a previous post, I mentioned we had purchased a discount book for attractions in the Tucson area.  Well, with a 2-for-1 entrance coupon, we loaded up our rain gear and headed out.

 

Are you familiar with Biosphere 2?  Do you recall back in the early 1990's a group of eight people lived inside the biosphere for two years.  It was an experiment to see if humans could live within a closed environment.  Depending on who to talk to, some folks saw the experiment as a success, while others considered it a failure.

Within the biosphere are several different landscapes or "biomes."  Because everything was inside and close, it was very hard to take any decent pictures.  But, here you go...

Here is the 1,900 square meter rainforest.  At one point they had bushbabies and hummingbirds living within the rainforest.  However, they got rid of the bushbabies when the hummingbirds began to disappear.  Apparently, bushbabies like to eat hummingbirds.

 

There is also an 850 square meter ocean with a coral reef....

 

And just beyond the ocean was the 450 square meter mangrove wetland.  I hadn't seen mangroves since leaving the Florida Keys in 2005.

 

 Although the "human" experiment ended 20 years ago, research continues within the Biosphere 2.  Much of today's research is focused on how plants react to water or the lack thereof. 

After touring the different biomes, our guide led us to the below-ground level technical infrastructure.  This is where everything happened to insure the Biosphere participants had fresh water and enough oxygen to survive.

 

 

And here is the South Lung (there is also a West Lung).  This contraption, weighing 16 tons and held up by air pressure, insured there was enough oxygen within the Biosphere.  Don't even ask me to explain how it all worked.  : )  

There is also a solar panel experiment taking place at Biosphere 2.  They have set up every different kind of solar panel imaginable and are comparing them to see which type is best.  Of course, this got Bill's attention.

 

We enjoyed our visit to Biosphere 2.  However, a sunny day would have been nice so that we could explore more outside the Biosphere.  But, the 2-for-1 coupon made it worthwhile, even in the pouring rain.