Grow-your-own reaches new heights
16 October 2011
Astronauts have succeeded in growing plants in a prototype greenhouse in space, paving the way for growing food on the moon.
Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli sowed 14 lettuce and Arabidopsis seeds in tiny custom-made greenhouses, each smaller than a shoebox, on the International Space Station. Two of the seeds germinated and grew on. The models were testing technology for full-sized lunar greenhouses being developed in Italy and the United States for installing on the moon.
It's hoped plants such as lettuces, melons and cucumbers growing in the giant cylindrical, collapsible structures will eventually provide half the required calorie intake for astronauts stopping off on their way to Mars and other long-distance missions. They will also recycle nutrients, provide drinking water and create oxygen.
Scientists believe plantlife on the moon will also provide some welcome respite for astronauts on long missions away from home.
'The first reason is for fresh food – astronauts need to have fresh food, fresh nutrients,' says space engineer and team member Marcia Pirolli. 'But the second reason is the psychological aspect: research has shown that the astronauts could feel better if they can see something green like a plant.'
Getting plants to grow in conditions in outer space, where there is no gravity, sunlight or air movement, has been a major challenge for European and American space programmes. However previous experiments have succeeded in germinating Arabidopsis seeds in orbit and growing the plants for long enough to produce seeds in turn, proving that plants can grow in space.