NEWS: The Library of Congress will make a trailblazing contribution to the America250 Time Capsule in Philadelphia in July: a tiny metal vial holding synthetic DNA encoded with digital copies from the Library’s collections.
The Library initiated a molecular data storage feasibility study in response to a request from Congress in 2024. As a result, the Library has been examining the storage capabilities of a new medium, synthetic DNA. An entirely manufactured molecule, synthetic DNA is designed to replicate the exceptional information density of nature’s best storage medium: DNA itself.
Working with the University of Washington’s Molecular Information Systems Lab, the Library has converted selected digital data into synthesized DNA strands encased in a metal vial about the length of a pencil eraser.
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Images: A one gigabyte synthetic DNA storage pellet encoded with digital copies of Library collection items is displayed alongside Thomas Jefferson’s handwritten draft of the Declaration of Independence, one of the many items molecularly stored, May 14, 2026. The DNA pellet will be buried in a time capsule in Philadelphia to mark America’s 250th birthday, and is set to be reopened in 2276. Photo by Shawn Miller/Library of Congress.
A one gigabyte synthetic DNA storage capsule containing digitized versions of Library of Congress collections treasures (next to a U.S. quarter for scale), is prepared to be included in a time capsule for America’s 250th anniversary this summer.
Photo by Shawn Miller/Library of Congress.
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