The Eden Project, a giant 22,000-square-metre complex of geodesic domes
bubbling up on the site of an old clay quarry in Cornwall, opened for business
this week. The “biomes” hold 75,000 tonnes of reclaimed soil made of sand from
the quarry mixed with compost, and are home to plants, insects and birds from
tropical and temperate climes. As well as tourism and education, the biomes will
support research projects. These include the conversion of landfill sites and
the preservation of endangered plants such as Impatiens gordonii, a species now
reduced to 250 plants in six small populations in…
To continue reading, today with our introductory offers
Advertisement
More from New Scientist
Explore the latest news, articles and features
Popular articles
Trending New Scientist articles
1
The world's fastest spider tops 3.5 metres per second
2
Where, when and how to watch the 2026 solar eclipse
3
A type of fibre that stimulates GLP-1 release approved for use in food
4
Babies are born with the neural foundations for maths
5
The weirdness of neutrinos could completely rewrite particle physics
6
The best new science-fiction novels published in July 2026
7
We’re not the most successful human species
8
Our verdict on The Selfish Gene: An unpopular piece of popular science
9
Slowdown of AMOC ocean current may be gradual and reversible
10
Have scientists really made a living cell from scratch? Not quite
