The mystery of the island is regarded as hell for Charles Darwin

The remote Ascension Island in the middle of the Atlantic used to have only one tree. But, the 150-year effort has helped to cover the island. Can humans do the same thing with Mars?

The island of Ascension is nearly 86 km ² , located south of the equator, between the continent of Africa and South America. The population of the island is about 800 people, most of them are British and American citizens.

Ascension has been chosen by scientists as the first place to build artificial ecosystems on Earth. Today, there are ground antenna stations on the island that track US missile tests, cosmic garbage and perform other tasks.

A place unlike any other place on Earth.

In 1836, Charles Darwin called the island "hideous". He stopped here on his journey from England to the Galapagos Islands.

Charles Darwin complained in his diary that the island was not suitable for British troops to occupy and turned into "production place". He described the landscape here as "burning" and completely "completely without trees". In fact, there was a tree on the island.

If Galapagos is Darwin's paradise, Ascension is hell. The rock on the island is red as lava because the island is the tip of an ocean volcano, emerging just about 1 million years ago.

The island has only a few thousand visitors a year, but the Blue Mountain on Ascension is a symbol of the global artificial ecosystem. This mountain is one of the most controversial topics about a completely new combination of species that do not have a similar development process and are gathered by humans.

The process of biotransformation on Ascension Island was extremely intense in the late 1990s.

The experiment is forgotten

Charles Darwin was the first to suggest using techniques to improve the environment on Ascension Island. But Sir Joseph Hooker - a Victorian botanist - is the one who put this idea into practice.

He started an experiment that broke the island's landscape and ecology. Later, it was found in Hooker's diary, when he was old, he regretted his efforts. He predicted the tragic impact that would occur after a century.

When young, Joseph Hooker was very enthusiastic. From 1843 until before 1850, he moved 330 trees from London's Royal Botanic Gardens in London to Green Mountain. By 1870, more than 5000 trees were planted.

Over time, the land and hydrology on the island changed.

Some unconfirmed reports show that heavy rains occur shortly after planting trees. Over time, the land and hydrology on the island changed.

The Royal British Navy Department - the original sponsor of the project - said conditions on Ascension Island were increasingly appropriate to station. All thanks to green trees.

In the 1880s, Hooker's "misty plants" formed a small lake at the top of the mountain, called Lake Dew - the first surface freshwater source on the island. Today, surrounding the lake is a 12m high natural bamboo wall.

Scientists believe that the biotransformation process on Ascension Island was extremely intense in the late 1990s. The data show a remarkable level of Hooker's experiment.

In 1863, sparrows, wrenches and some African coastal birds came to the island.

In 1863, sparrows, wrenches and some African coastal birds came to the island. In 1868, some types of oranges, lemons, custard apple, na and cloth were planted on the island. But not everything grows.

Hooker's botanical garden was devastated in the 1890s and only the healthiest imported plant species survived. Flora from America and Africa did not exist until the end of the 90s of the 20th century.

By the early 2000s, it became a good example of a science novel " novel ecosystems " (novel ecosystems).