Growing Plants for NASA Challenges in Lunar and Martian Agriculture

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1 Growing Plants for NASA Challenges in Lunar and Martian Agriculture Fred Davies, Chunajiu He, Ron Lacey and Que Ngo Depts. of Horticultural Sciences & Biolog. & Agr. Engineering Texas A&M University College Station, Texas

2 Humans Have Always Wanted Fly! (B. Bugbee)

3 (B. Bugbee)

4 Humans Have Always Had The Urge and Spirit of Adventure Some 500 years ago (around the time of Columbus), common knowledge was that the earth was flat and sailing ships & their crews would d fall to their deaths. One hundred years ago (Dec 17, 1903) in Kitty Hawk, N.C., the Wright W Brothers first successful powered air flight (120 feet in 12 sec clocked 30 mph in a 20 mph wind). Pushing the Envelope The Right Stuff. Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier (Mach mph) in Bell X-1 X 1 jet in October 1947.

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6 Plants for Human Life Support HUMANS Metabolic Energy food (CH 2 O) + O 2 CO 2 + H 2 O Clean Water Waste Water Light food (CH 2 O) + O 2 CO 2 + H 2 O Clean Water Waste Water PLANTS (R. Wheeler)

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8 Chemical & Physical Systems

9 Near-Term Opportunities for Plants in Space Intl. Space Station

10 The Problem Tough Environment for Plants in Lunar & Martian Agriculture Atmospheric Pressure: Moon-0; Mars-1/100 th earth s. Gravity: Moon 1/6 th ; Mars 2/5 th earth s. Day length: Moon 29.5 days 14.8 days in dark Mars-24 hr 39min. Mars Atmosphere is 95% CO 2 ; ½ light as on earth. No carbon on Moon (needed for photosynthesis). Light- can be captured, but will need to be produced artificially.

11 The Currency of Space POWER Energy costs to produce power, i.e. generating light for plants MASS WEIGHT very expensive to ship stuff into Space; Vacuum of space makes large transport structures difficult to build

12 The Problem (con) Travel to Mars & Return to Earth is a 3-year 3 process, i.e. you can t cram enough food into a space ship. Need to incorporate Biogenerative Life Support Systems (recycling using PLANTS & physical-chemical chemical systems), rather than just depending on Resupply. Plants also supplement physical/chemical methods of removing Carbon Dioxide (CO 2 ) and producing Oxygen (O 2 ). Plants are being used as supplemental food source: NASA s Salad Bar program

13 Kennedy Space Center ALS Studies Large Systems, Staple Crops Biomass Production Chamber (BPC) Studies: 20 m 2 area, 113 m 3 vol., W W HPS lamps, four 250 L NFT systems wheat, soybean, lettuce, potato, tomato Growth Chamber Studies: crop growth in nutrient film technique (NFT) crop growth under HID (HPS) lighting crop responses to CO 2 (R. Wheeler)

14 KSC Focus Large Systems, Staple Crops

15 KSC Focus Large Systems, Staple Crops

16 ALS Candidate Crop Testing Focus on ISS / Vehicle Systems Crops suggested for testing for ISS and space flight systems: - Lettuce - Spinach - Carrot - Green Onion - Radish - Tomato - Pepper - Strawberry - Cabbage (includes: leafy Brassicas) - Fresh Herbs (includes: Chives, Basil, Mint, and Dill)

17 New Focus KSC Smaller Systems, Supplemental Crops, Flight Environments Radish, Onion, and Lettuce Tomato, Pepper, Strawberry (future testing) Space Flight Conditions Low-Moderate PPF Super-elevated elevated CO 2 [360 ppm 10,000 ppm] Water / nutrient delivery systems compatible with microgravity (weightlessness). Mixed Species Testing

18 ALS Candidate Crop Testing-- --KSC Radish cv. Comparison HPS vs. CWF Lighting Raphanus sativus Eight cultivars NFT culture 21 days 23 C 16 h hr L / 8 hr D 1200 ppm CO µmol m -2 s -1 PPF

19 ALS Candidate Crop Testing-- --KSC Onion cv. Comparison HPS vs. CWF Lighting Allium fistulosum Eight cultivars NFT culture 42 days 23 C 16 h light / 8 h dark 1200 ppm CO µmol m -2 s -1 PPF HPS Fluorescent

20 ALS Candidate Crop Testing KSC Crop Growth Under LED Lighting Light Emitting Diodes + good electric efficiency + long operating life * + no IR output + no Hg or arc discharge - narrow spectrum Red Blue Green Photosynthesis Phytochrome Photomorphogenesis Phototropism Stomatal Control Human Vision Canopy Penetration?

21 effect of adding green light

22 ALS Candidate Crop Testing-- --KSC Mars Greenhouse Concepts Saturation Pressure (kpa) C 25 C 15 C Evaporation Rate (L m -2 d -1 ) Relative Humidity % 65% 50% Total Pressure (kpa) Total Pressure (kpa)

23 Plant Growth at Sub-Ambient Atmospheric Pressures Advantages of Low Pressure System Less structure needs to be shipped into space. Less gas leakage from low pressure crop production to vacuum of Moon or near vacuum of Mars. Crew could tend crops without suiting up. Won t have to ship or produce as much Nitrogen gas

24 A C B D Figure 4. (A) Six-chambered low pressure growth (LPPG) system; (B) R. Lacey & C-J C J He starting an experiment; lettuce at (C) early and (D) later stage of development ent under low pressure.

25 LPS LPS

26 Results of Low Pressure Systems (LPS) Lettuce and wheat can be grown under low pressure. Photosynthesis and stomatal conductance not adversely affected. Accumulation of ETHYENE in chambers under ambient pressure reduced lettuce and wheat growth. [ 1 ppb 1000 ppb] Lower ethylene production and better plant growth with LPS. DARK RESPIRATION (at night) lower under LPS = greater plant yield.

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33 Solar Collectors for Crop Production Buried Plant Growth Chambers Copyright Sadler Machine Co. 9/10/99

34 Inflatable Greenhouses for Crop Production Human Habitat Attached Inflatable Greenhouses Composting Facility Copyright Sadler Machine Co. 9/10/99

35 Psychological Effects of Plants in Space? ¾ Fresh Foods Colors Texture Flavor ¾ Bright Light ¾ Aromas ¾ Gardening Activity (R. Wheeler)

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