Greens from outer space

Scientists may have successfully grown food under ‘Mars-like’ conditions, but this isn’t the first time they have toyed with the idea of growing something in space

Building a colony on Mars may seem too far-fetched an idea in real terms, but scientists are trying to make us believe that it could happen some day. Taking the first step, they have gone on to prove that it’s possible to grow food on Martian soil.

For long, scientists have been attempting to grow crops in soils created to simulate conditions on the red planet and also the moon. But some of them were concer ned that even if food grew, it would contain dangerous levels of metals that would be toxic to humans.

But now, scientists at Wageningen University & Research Centre, Wageningen, The Netherlands, have shown that growing tomatoes, peas, radishes, rye and other such edible crops in space is not only safe, but possibly healthier.

In an experiment to test how well we can grow crops in space, the scientists managed to harvest 10 crops, including tomatoes, peas and rye, from soil that mimics the conditions on Mars. Although the Mars-equivalent soil produced slightly fewer crops than regular earth soil, the difference wasn’t huge, suggesting that, in the right conditions, early settlers might be able to sustainably feed themselves with crops grown on the red planet.

The researchers also grew the same 10 crops—tomato, rye, radish, pea, leek, spinach, garden rocket, cress, quinoa and chives— in soil that mimicked moon soil and showed that these crops were about half as successful as Mars’ crops, with spinach, in particular, struggling in the lunar environment.

So how do you find soil that’s chemically similar to the kind you’d find outside of earth? You head to some of the most extreme places on our planet. The ‘Mars soil’ came from a volcano on Hawaii, while the ‘moon soil’ was collected from a desert in Arizona. These were then mixed with fresh-cut grass in shallow trays, which made it easier to water the crops. A control tray contained regular earth potting compost, says Science Alert, a leading international scientific publisher.

Before you get too excited and start packing your gardening gear for Mars, there are a few things to flag here—first of all, the results haven’t been published, so “we’re currently taking Wageningen University’s word for it. The study also only mimicked soil on Mars and the Moon, and not the rest of their conditions—such as the harsh space radiation, or the bitter heat and cold”, as per Science Alert.

The crops were grown in a glass house under earth’s atmosphere, with stable humidity, light and temperature—but scientists point out that this is because “we expect that first crop growth on Mars and moon will take place in underground rooms to protect the plants from the hostile environment”.

Finally, the most crucial phase of the experiment—determining whether these plants are safe to eat—hasn’t commenced as yet. And there’s no point growing crops if they are going to poison us, writes Science Alert.

But despite the limitations, it’s still pretty exciting to know that soil on the red planet is capable of growing our food crops—because there’s nothing more comforting when you’re billions of kilometres from home than fresh vegetables.

This is not the first time scientists have toyed with the idea of growing something in space. In January this year, astronauts successfully managed to grow the first flower in space onboard the International Space Station. The orange zinnia flowers could be eaten and were grown in the ‘veggie’ laboratory, which was installed on the space station in 2014.

Last year, astronauts also managed to grow and eat the first lettuce onboard the International Space Station (ISS), which, as per Science Alert, looked ‘pretty tasty’. As per Nasa, the six astronauts living on the ISS at that point of time became the first people to eat food grown in space.

“The fresh red romaine lettuce that accompanied the crew’s usual freeze-dried fare, however, is far from the first crop grown on a space station. For decades, Nasa and other agencies have experimented with plants in space, but the results were always sent to earth for examination, rather than eaten,” Nasa said.

The dream of a colony in outer space just got a little bit closer.

Scientists harvested 10 crops, including peas and rye, from soil that mimics conditions on Mars (above)