For scientist Cultivate plants on rocks taken from the surface of the moon. It was a sign that someday people could live on the moon, grow food and produce water.
Researchers at the University of Florida announced they have cultivated plants in lunar soil and discovered what they call an “exploratory dream.” This is the first time scientists have shown that life could arise from regolith, the rock found on the lunar surface.
The scientists say their findings, which have been published in the journal Communications Biology, could have implications for future lunar exploration missions. Rob Ferl, one of the study’s authors, said the research could help astronauts carry out missions on the moon by growing their own food, including reducing the need for supplies from Earth.
“When humans move as a civilization, not only to explore for a few days, but when going to live somewhere, we always take agriculture with us,” Ferl said.
Apart from providing a certain level of food security in space, this research has other potential benefits. It can also help astronauts purify the air, remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and produce clean water.
How to cultivate plants in lunar soil?
Researchers planted seeds of rock lettuce (Arabidopsis) in lunar soil that was brought back to Earth by astronauts about 50 years ago. The soil was collected in three different Apollo missions, namely Apollo 11 and 12 in 1969 and Apollo 17 in 1972.
They divided the lunar soil into 1 gram containers. Then the scientists added water, light and nutrients. They also planted the seeds of the second group on volcanic ash, which is similar in composition to lunar soil, as a control group.
After less than 48 hours, the scientists saw growth in both groups, but noted days later that plants on lunar soil appeared to be under stress. Plants on regolith from the Moon appear dwarfed in comparison to those grown on Earth’s volcanic ash. But Ferl said the fact that the plant could grow made the discovery positive.
“The bottom line is, until the research is really done, no one knows if plants, especially plant roots, will be able to interact with the intensely sharp and highly antagonistic soil that is the nature of lunar regolith,” said Ferl.
Difficulty getting samples
Experiments for growing plants on regolith tend to be easy, but obtaining the materials needed to facilitate research is difficult. The researchers only had about 12 grams of lunar soil or about a tablespoon. While this research had to be done several times, over a decade.
“These samples are very valuable natural treasures,” said co-author Anna-Lisa Paul. “When we worked with the soil this month, we changed it. Once the lunar soils come into contact with air and water, they are no longer pure and they lose some of their natural archival properties, which were so protected before.”
Benefits for future lunar missions
This finding is very significant. It’s even more important now than ever, linked to plans by NASA and the European Space Agency that hope to send astronauts back to the moon through the Artemis program.
There are plans to launch the first unmanned Artemis mission this 2022, and a manned mission by the end of the decade. Other countries are also racing with moonlight programs in the years to come, including Japan, India and China.
But scientists still don’t know how plants from Earth would interact with a real, not simulated, lunar environment. The moon is very dry compared to Earth, and that can change the ability of plants to grow. (DW)
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