The LaVA Library (2021)
Hello, Earth.
The Lava Library is a test mission for an upcoming series of ultra-long-term Earth Archives.
The Lava Library is printed on nickel NanoFiche, an ultra-durable analog nano storage medium developed by The Arch Mission Foundation’s Chief Scientist, Bruce Ha.
NanoFiche can be read without any advanced technology. Since it is an analog storage medium, designed to replace microfiche, it can be viewed using simple optical magnification like a few drops of water or a basic microscope.
Our team selected this technology for our first Earth Library because it is durable, has a high information density, and is likely to be decipherable by future recipients with similar biological traits.
We expect The Lava Library to endure for up to a million years on Earth if undisturbed.
The Lava Library was buried in January in the lava tubes of Hawaii’s Mauna Loa volcano by the Valoria I mission crew of HI-SEAS during a Mars simulation mission. HI-SEAS (Hawai’i Space Exploration Analog and Simulation) is an analog space habitat located at 8200 feet above sea level. HI-SEAS aids space exploration and research through simulating missions to the Moon and Mars with related human psychology, astrobiology, geology and technology testing projects. The Lava Library was selected as one of the technology testing projects for this mission.
The Lava Library contained a time capsule curated by Valoria 1 crew members Hillary Coe and MaryLiz Bender. It is printed on nickel NanoFiche, an ultra-durable analog nano storage medium developed by The Arch Mission Foundation’s Chief Scientist, Bruce Ha. NanoFiche can be read without any advanced technology. Since it is an analog storage medium, designed to replace microfiche, it can be viewed using simple optical magnification like a few drops of water or a basic microscope. In addition to the time capsule, Arch Mission deployed nine additional copies to test nano archival technology in extreme Earth environments, such as near active lava flows, and in deep cavernous locations.