Abstract
Access to the rainforest canopy of Biosphere 2 presented a unique challenge to design and build a fall arrestance system that would meet the needs of the ecological research community and ensure a high degree of safety for users. The system was based on technology typically used in canopy research in field settings, but differed due to the presence of the steel spaceframe that enclosed the mesocosms of Biosphere 2. This paper reports the design of a fall arrestance system that meets federal regulations for health and safety and an example of gas exchange data collected in the canopy of the Biosphere 2 rainforest. The preliminary results from leaf gas exchange measurements indicated distinct differences between understory and canopy plants, emphasizing the importance of access to the canopy for experimental research.
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