mesocosm

[ mee-zuh-koz-uhm, mez-uh- ]

noun

, Environmental Science.

1. a relatively large, controlled outdoor experimental environment or ecosystem, as opposed to one in a laboratory: Compare microcosm ( def 3 ).

   The research facility, with 50 3,000-liter shallow freshwater mesocosms, is one of Europe's largest.

Word History and Origins

Origin of mesocosm¹

First recorded in 1980–85; meso- ( def ) + -cosm ( def )