Although digitalizing public documents and images has come a long way in recent years, current data storage media would last up to around 100 years and would likely not survive a fire or other disasters…

For handing down highly valuable, cultural and historical data to posterity, Hitachi is working on a nearly permanent digital archive, one that is resistant to extreme temperatures, radiation, humidity, fire and water.

This cutting-edge data storage is made of fused silica and can last as long as 300 million years. It can also withstand temperatures of 1,000 degrees Celsius. While other methods were examined, none of them were as effective as fused silica. In December 2014, a fused silica glass containing images and a message for the distant future was created using this technology.

It was attached to the artificial satellite “Shin-en 2”, and launched into space simultaneously with Hayabusa 2. Hitachi continues to work on research and development to preserve valuable data for close to eternity.

In 2008, Hitachi’s Central Research Laboratory launched a research project to develop nearly permanent data storage as part of its ‘Innovation Research.’