All space travel is expensive and very dangerous. Throughout the journey, astronauts must live with extreme radiation, pressure, and temperature changes. Including small meteorites that cannot be predicted when they will strike. It would cost about $1 million to send something weighing half a kilogram to the Moon, which is more expensive than sending it to Mars.
Even though I know that everything is risky and requires a lot of capital,”NASA” Still finding ways to make space travel easier for humans. Includes the construction of various infrastructure to support future human activity. At this time, NASA is beginning to use “a lump of fungus” it is a building material.moon
“You cannot use wooden planks or bricks to build external structures. And taking a prefabricated building to the moon is very expensive,” said Chris Maurer, founder of Redhouse, a NASA-affiliated architecture firm. To solve the mystery of this extraterrestrial construction, he said.
With limited resources, scientists are trying to build things with what is available on the desert planet according to plan.Planetary resource management or FAITH (Use of In-Situ Resources) and right now on the moon there may be only water and reolite. (moon dust)
These scarce resources seem to be sufficient to cultivate fungi. which can be processed into a building material that is stronger than concrete and can be used for many additional benefits
Image credit: NASA
The Miracle of Mycotager
“Mycotature(Mycotecture) YesThe use of fungi to create building materials in space It has become a trend that has been gaining popularity in the last few years. and is used in everything from art to architecture to building systems. “Biocycling(Biocycling) A recycling system helps eliminate and decompose biological waste.
Redhouse, Maurer’s company Microteger technology is used to solve problems around the world. along with edible mushrooms To solve the problem of food shortage
Lynn Rothschild, astrobiologist and NASA project director Recognize the potential of mycotacteria and fungi. that it can be used in space work Since then, NASA has continued to study the project.
The fungus technology was inspired by NASA figures such as Jim Head, a geologist who trained astronauts for the Apollo lunar exploration program, and Apollo leader David Scott 15 and one of 12 people to ever walk on the moon.
Making Redhouse Fungus Bricks starts with feeding different types of fungi with organic matter from plants or waste. The resulting material is then burned and compacted into bricks that are more durable than concrete and better for the environment. But strength is not the main quality needed if it were to be used on the moon.
“Strength doesn’t matter on the moon or on Mars. Because the force of gravity is much less. and the strength of the building will be directed outward. Therefore, there is no need to use strong materials with high compressive strength, but materials with high tensile strength,” explained Maurer.
Therefore, a new way of growing the fungus is needed. They will grow fungi and algae on inflatable rubber molds. This allows them to absorb water and regolith in the ice below the moon’s surface. This method allows the fungus to grow on the moon.
hourOnce fully grown, this fungal brick makes up about 90% of the building’s mass, and the fungal growth process takes about 30-60 days to complete. It’s like we get construction materials from the moon. It eliminates the need to transport heavy objects from Earth, saving NASA trillions of dollars.
Photo credit: redhouse
The fungal substance is also very useful as a defense against cold. as well as protection against small meteorites.Fungal material 8 cm thick blocks more than 99% of deadly radiation, which is better than regolith, which requires a thickness of 3 meters to provide the same level of radiation protection.
Melanin in mushrooms has been proven to be highly effective in protecting cells and DNA from harmful electromagnetic radiation. It can also slow down and scatter particle radiation.
These risks are the main reason why the United States has not sent astronauts to the moon since the 1970s, because it is too dangerous to do so. If you meet the solar wind just once, it can definitely cause cancer.
“In those days, we were very urgent because we wanted to beat the Soviets to get to the moon. But astronauts are always at risk,” Maurer explained.
Although experiments on Earth have given surprising results, But there is always the possibility of unexpected events occurring in the harsh environment of space. Rothschild admits that no one knows if everything will turn out as planned. Will the structure be strong enough? Can fungus grow? until structures are placed on the moon At the earliest, it would take at least 10 years to send the structure to space.
Source: Algeria, Paper Arch, NASA
Photo credit: redhouse
2024-10-05 02:41:00
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