In a recent experiment testing how well we can
grow crops in space, researchers have accomplished to harvest 10 crops, counting
tomatoes, peas, and rye, from soil that mimics the environments on Mars. Even
though the Mars-equivalent soil grew marginally fewer crops than regular Earth
soil, the variance wasn't huge, signifying that, in the right circumstances,
early colonizers on Mars might be able to sustainably feed themselves with
crops grown on Marian surface. So yeah we can safely say that the dream of a
Martian colony just got a little bit closer.
The researchers also harvested the same 10 crops -
tomato, rye, radish, pea, leek, spinach, garden rocket, cress, quinoa, and
chives - in soil similar to Moon soil, and exhibited that these crops were
about half as successful as Mars crops, with spinach in specifically struggling
in the lunar environs.
"The production of biomass on the Mars soil
simulant was lower than on Earth control, but it was a minor difference and
caused by one of the trays that showed less growth," said lead researcher Wieger Wamelink from Wageningen University & Research centre in the Netherlands. "That was a real surprise to us. It shows that the Mars soil
simulant has great potential when properly prepared and watered."
In order to find soil that's chemically similar to
kind you'd find outside of Earth, researchers headed to some of the most punishing
places on our planet. The soil mimicking Marian soil came from a volcano on
Hawaii, while 'Moon' soil was collected in a desert in Arizona. These were then
mixed with fresh cut grass in thin trays, which made it easier to water the
crops. A control tray confined regular Earth potting compost.
One thing to mention here is that the results
haven't been published, so we're presently taking Wageningen University's word
for it (for the record, this is their second experiment on space crops, so it's
not an unreliable word to take, but we're always wary until we see
peer-reviewed findings).
You can learn more about this here.
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