The global seed vault
Remember Superman’s Fortress of Solitude in the Arctic, a huge underground cave. Well, this is exactly like that, but there’s nothing fictional about it.
Where is it? Norway has built this by hollowing a huge hole in the sandstone hills in Spitsbergen, the largest island in the Svalbard chain, way above the Arctic Circle.
What is its purpose? The Global Seed Vault is a “Doomsday vault”. In case something like a nuclear conflict, meteor strike, epidemic or global warming (who knows?) wipes out a majority of the human race, the survivors will be able to grow crops from the 4.5 million different seed samples stored here.
Won’t it cost a lot? The Government of Norway will look after the Seed Vault but because of its location, it won’t need much in terms of cooling. So, even if power outages were to strike the vault, the contents are expected to stay safe.
— Kushan Mitra
