Large-Scale Crop Production for the Moon and Mars: Current Gaps and Future Perspectives

Poulet, Lucie; Engeling, Kenneth; Hatch, Tyler; Stahl-Rommel, Sarah; Justiniano, Yo-Ann Velez; Castro-Wallace, Sarah L.; Bunchek, Jess M.; Monje, Oscar; Hummerick, Mary E.; Khodadad, Christina L.; Spencer, Lashelle; Pechous, Josie; Johnson, Christina; Fritsche, Ralph; Massa, Gioia D.; Romeyn, Matthew W.; O’Rourke, Aubrie; Wheeler, Raymond

doi:10.3389/fspas.2021.733944

Cited by 12 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 94 publications

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“…Plants have grown in low Earth orbit [8,9] for decades, but many challenges still remain before it will be possible to grow them sustainably for food production [10][11][12][13]. Since plants are reactive biological organisms, the elementary processes that govern their growth and development need to be thoroughly understood before they can reliably be grown on a larger scale in space and integrated within a bioregenerative LSS (BLSS) [12,14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modelling physical processes in higher plants using leaf replicas for space applications

Kuźma¹,

Poulet²,

Fontaine³

et al. 2023

Comptes Rendus. Mécanique

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In the future, higher plant cultivation will be a key component of Bioregenerative Life-Support Systems. This will require a deep understanding of phenomena that play an important role at the core of plant metabolism and of their interaction with the environment. Plants are complex organisms that must be studied with the use of leaf replicas. This enables the study of physical phenomena at the leaf surface, without biochemical or biological interactions nor genetic variability. To assess the influence of gravity, it is a necessary step to develop precise mechanistic models of plant behaviour in space. This review article presents the state-of-the-art of leaf replicas and concomitant phenomena, with a space gaze.Résumé. À l'avenir, la culture de plantes supérieures sera un élément clé des systèmes de support de vie biorégénératifs. Cela nécessitera une compréhension approfondie des phénomènes qui jouent un rôle important au coeur du métabolisme des plantes et de leur interaction avec l'environnement. Les plantes sont des organismes complexes qui doivent être étudiés à l'aide de répliques de feuilles. Ceci permet l'étude des phénomènes physiques à la surface des feuilles, sans interactions biochimiques ou biologiques, ni variabilité génétique. Pour évaluer l'influence de la gravité, il est nécessaire de développer des modèles mécanistes précis du comportement des plantes dans l'espace. Cet article de synthèse présente l'état de l'art des répliques foliaires et des phénomènes concomitants, pour une application spatiale.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modelling physical processes in higher plants using leaf replicas for space applications

Kuźma¹,

Poulet²,

Fontaine³

et al. 2023

Comptes Rendus. Mécanique

Self Cite

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“…On Earth, we rely heavily on them for a wide range of compounds including food items, fermented drinks, pharmaceuticals, structural materials, and fuels. They may become even more central on Mars 3 – 6 : constraints are such that bioprocesses would often be more resource-efficient than abiotic industries used for similar purposes on Earth.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

On the growth dynamics of the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7938 in Martian regolith

et al. 2022

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The sustainability of crewed infrastructures on Mars will depend on their abilities to produce consumables on site. These abilities may be supported by diazotrophic, rock-leaching cyanobacteria: from resources naturally available on Mars, they could feed downstream biological processes and lead to the production of oxygen, food, fuels, structural materials, pharmaceuticals and more. The relevance of such a system will be dictated largely by the efficiency of regolith utilization by cyanobacteria. We therefore describe the growth dynamics of Anabaena sp. PCC 7938 as a function of MGS-1 concentration (a simulant of a widespread type of Martian regolith), of perchlorate concentration, and of their combination. To help devise improvement strategies and predict dynamics in regolith of differing composition, we identify the limiting element in MGS-1 – phosphorus – and its concentration-dependent effect on growth. Finally, we show that, while maintaining cyanobacteria and regolith in a single compartment can make the design of cultivation processes challenging, preventing direct physical contact between cells and grains may reduce growth. Overall, we hope for the knowledge gained here to support both the design of cultivation hardware and the modeling of cyanobacterium growth within.

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Potential for Lunar and Martian Regolith to Support Agriculture

Braddock

2023

Handbook of Life Support Systems for Spacecraft and Extraterrestrial Habitats

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Large-Scale Crop Production for the Moon and Mars: Current Gaps and Future Perspectives

Cited by 12 publications

References 94 publications

Modelling physical processes in higher plants using leaf replicas for space applications

Modelling physical processes in higher plants using leaf replicas for space applications

On the growth dynamics of the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7938 in Martian regolith

Potential for Lunar and Martian Regolith to Support Agriculture

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