Scientists are working on a project to grow food in space, which could revolutionise the diet of astronauts. It is hoped that specially designed glasshouses will be able to provide fresh fruits and vegetables to astronauts manning the International Space Station (ISS), as well as deliver produce for any future trip to Mars. Daniel Schubert, an engineer with the German Aerospace Center (DLR), and his colleagues are currently growing lettuce in a sterile laboratory that is a test-bed for the idea - part of a project to develop resource-conserving greenhouses for use in space. “Every kilogram transported from Earth into orbit costs up to 20,000 euros,” explains Schubert. “If that kilogram has to be transported to Mars, we are almost looking at millions of euros.”
Several tons of special food would be needed for any future possible Mars mission - which would last between two and three years and require a team of six astronauts. Rather than carry the heavy food, it would be better if seeds could be taken up and grown in space. ”The astronauts would then be able to produce their own fresh food,” says Schubert. The garden in space would have another advantageous side effect, namely the production of oxygen. The plants also produce plenty of water, which could be used for drinking. Equally important is thepotential positive psychological effect of being able to see a bit of greenery in space. ”It could help mitigate the ‘drab’ experience of spending three years in an artificially lit tin can, being surrounded by countless cables and enduring high levels of
noise,” says Schubert. This has already been noticed on the ISS.
”The astronauts are happy to visit the plant experiments and ‘stroke’ them,”he adds.
Tasty, fresh food would improve the mood of the scientists. ”We are creating the first garden on a distant planet,” says engineer Schubert, although the research, code-named Eden, is still at an early stage. The first harvested lettuce did not taste particularly good, but researchers have nonetheless reached a first milestone.
It is expected that by 2016-17 a prototype greenhouse will be tested for nine months in one of earth’s more inhospitable environments-Neumayer Station III, run by Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) in the Antarctic. DLR engineer Paul Zabel will travel to the Antarctic to supervise the project, along with nine of AWI’s own researchers. “The Project closely resembles a space mission, which is why I immediately took so much interest in it,” says 27-year-old Zabel. However, there is a lot of preparatory research to be carried out, with all highly perishable vegetables being grown first. “We first want to conquer the lettuce, and then the radish,” explains Schubert. ”Cucumbers and tomatoes are the most difficult of all.”
At the moment the greenhouses are still standing in an underground DLR facility in the northern German city of Bremen. Anyone wanting to enter the room has to don protective clothing and
wear protective spectacles, because of the ultraviolet light emanating from the LED panels. The plants grow in the closed system extremely quickly and are ‘used to living under lights’ for 24 hours a day. Soil is not necessary: the plants are suspended in the air, while the roots are constantly sprayed with nutrients. Whatever is not taken in by the plants is recycled and squirted on them again. ”We don’t need pesticides either, because pests and disease can’t infiltrate a closed system,” boasts Schubert. It is hoped that inflatable greenhouses can be used in the future. “We need to take this a step at a time. It would be fatal if the ‘facility’ finally does not work on Moon or Mars,” remarks Schubert.
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