A Black Box for Earth is set to record environmental disasters | TechTree.com

A Black Box for Earth is set to record environmental disasters

The Black Box’s mission is to record every step we take towards climate catastrophe, providing a record for future civilizations to understand what caused our unfortunate demise.

 

The project, which is in beta, is led by University of Tasmania researchers and advertising agency Clemenger BBDO.

The black box will be about the size of a city bus, made of 3-inch-thick steel and topped with solar panels. When the sun is shining, the black box will record relevant scientific data. 

Its interior will contain "storage drives" that gather climate change-related data such as ocean acidification, average temperatures and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. It will also deploy an algorithm to scour the web for information – news, tweets, military expenditures, etc. 

Storage is estimated to run out in 30 to 50 years but there are plans to increase storage capacity and provide a more long-term solution.

It’s unclear how the structure will be maintained -- how well those drives hold up after decades how its solar panels might be replaced before the end of the world, and how impervious the vault will be to sabotage or vandalism.

Its remote location in Tasmania, four hours from the closest major city, is certainly a deterrent for thieves, but it really depends how desperate the thief is. 

The big question remains – will this black box actually work or is it a marketing gimmick? Will future generations learn something from our demise or is history doomed to repeat itself? 

Most importantly, will this black box pressure political/business leaders to turn a new carbon-free leaf? 


TAGS: Black Box, Clemenger BBDO, climate catastrophe

 
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