The LOEWE Research Cluster MOSLA ‘Molecular Storage
 for Long-Term Archiving’ investigates transdisciplinary approaches to a fundamental problem of humankind: the long-term storage of information. The cluster drives further developments of molecular memories as alternative data storage media with the aim to prevent a ‘Digital Dark Age’ (the loss of all digital information). The MOSLA researchers focus on two molecular information carriers: DNA and  elemental organic cluster building blocks. MOSLA aims at increasing the storage density of DNA, e.g. through better algorithms for data encoding, the use of modified nucleotides, and to enhance stability of the DNA memory by encoding digital information in spore-forming microorganisms. Apart from the ability to form spores, microbial cells provide further advantages, such as mechanisms for DNA copying and repair. As a complementary strategy, storing information based on elemental organic cluster building blocks is studied. This format has a high potential to provide a robust data storage medium allowing for an optical data readout.