Gardeners of the Galaxy Mission Report: 1 October 2024
Here's your weekly round-up of astrobotany news and adventure. This week we've got a new podcast episode, seeds on a recoverable Chinese satellite, flying botanists and more!
Hello, Gardeners of the Galaxy! Welcome to this week's Mission Report.
It’s been so windy here lately that the falling leaves look like they’re defying gravity – but they fall to the ground soon enough. Elsewhere in the solar system, though, things are different. So it’s time for another exciting foray into space gardening.
Our Mission Specialist for this episode is Benz Kotzen, a Professor of Landscape Architecture and Nature Based Solutions at the University of Greenwich. He’s here to tell us about his FEEDING MARS project, which showcased a live experiment growing vegetables, herbs and fruits in Martian simulant soils, using fish effluents from an aquaponic system as fertilizer.
In this episode:
02:58 Benz introduces us to aquaponics, an ancient way of raising fish and plants together.
05:47 Benz explains why he decided to explore the idea of using aquaponics on Mars.
09:30 Hear all about his FEEDING MARS pilot study, which carried out an aquaponics experiment using Martian regoliths in an exhibition hall open to the public.
15:53 Find out what Benz learned from the project.
21:17 Benz discusses how to create a living soil (circular economy) on Mars, and his plans for future experiments.
23:25 Hear whether Benz would follow research Rob Ferl into space, and if he’d take a trip to Mars.
25:48 What plant would Benz take with him for the trip?
Listen now: Aquaponics on Mars with Benz Kotzen (GotG61)
I’ve just had to pay PodBean for hosting for Gardeners of the Galaxy – a bill of $108 for the year. If you are able to chip in to help cover it, I would be grateful! You could buy me a coffee, buy a bonus episode, or just donate directly via PayPal, to earth@spacebotany.uk. Thank you!
China has launched 16 varieties of highland barley and rapeseed into space on its first reusable satellite, Shijian-19. The satellite’s payload includes 520g of seeds, which will be used for space breeding (mutagenesis) experiments.
In May 2024, a new centre for space breeding was established in Cona, Southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. It is dedicated to “space breeding work for local agricultural varieties in the plateau region, promoting the breeding research of local barley, Tibetan medicine, chili peppers, rapeseed, and other varieties. It also focuses on researching germplasm resources suitable for high-altitude, cold, and arid areas, including forage, ecological grass, Tibetan medicine, and fruits and vegetables.”
The project to develop space forage varieties is already underway, with 30 acres planted with six varieties.
There are two configurations of the Shijian-19 satellite. We can reasonably expect this first mission to be the short-term version, designed to return to Earth after about two weeks. A longer-term version with solar panels, can remain in orbit for longer, to support extended experiments. The recoverable portion of the satellite can carry up to 600kg of payload.
Read more: China sends plateau barley and rapeseed to space with nation's first reusable satellite and China launches reusable Shijian-19 satellite for space breeding and technology tests.
In other news...
ESA and the DLR have opened their new lunar analog facility near Cologne. LUNA is designed to recreate the lunar surface and will be used to prepare astronauts, scientists, engineers and mission experts for living and working on the Moon. Additional features will soon be implemented such as a gravity offloading system to simulate the Moon’s one-sixth of Earth gravity and an adjustable ramp for testing mobility on lunar slopes. The EDEN-ISS greenhouse is also being refurbished for a new life as EDEN-LUNA, and is scheduled to be connected to LUNA in 2025.
Read more: ESA-DLR lunar analogue facility inaugurated
WUFT has a story on Rob Ferl’s recent suborbital flight on Blue Origin’s New Shepherd rocket. The plants he took with him have already been cut up to have their RNA evaluated for genetic change, but it will take months to see any results from the experiment.
“In one part it was a little bit weird,” said Ferl. “I mean you have to understand that you’re walking into the lab – wearing a spacesuit – and you’re just down the hall from the restroom and there’s the other laboratories and people are walking around and WHAT IS THAT GUY DOING?!”
Read more: “Green-thumb” University of Florida professor (now astronaut) continues research collected in space
Nautilus has a feature on the LEAF project that will land plants on the Moon with Artemis III.
Read more: Will Plants Grow on the Moon?
And fresh from their experiment on Polaris Dawn (LEO PLANTS), the USAF Academy team is collaborating with Rhodium Scientific to send Arabidopsis plants to the International Space Station (ISS). Their next experiment, Rhodium Plant LIFE: LEO Integrated Flori-culture Experiment (LIFE) 01 launched with Crew 9, and will grow in low Earth orbit there for four to six days. The Polaris Dawn mission flew at a higher Earth orbit, so a comparison between the two sets of results could provide insights into the production of crops on long-duration space missions or in higher-radiation environments.
The original mission of BioSentinel was to study samples of yeast in deep space. Though these yeast samples are no longer alive, BioSentinel has adapted and continues to be a novel platform for studying the potential impacts of deep space conditions on life beyond the protection of Earth's atmosphere and magnetosphere.
Read more: NASA's BioSentinel studies solar radiation as Earth watches aurora
Space professionals from organisations across the UK will descend on Manchester in July 2025 for the UK Space Conference. The event will be held at Manchester Central on 16 to 17 July 2025.
Read more: Manchester to host 2025 UK Space Conference
IWOOT. Space Kook has created a Lego wonder for SHIPtember, when builders race to complete a spaceship that is a Seriously Huge Investment of Parts. They’ve designed the LSS Kew, a Botanical Cruiser adorned with domes to transport Earth biomes to distant colonies. The mix of microscale biomes includes forest, desert, tundra, and agricultural domes.
Read more: Botanical Cruiser carries Earth’s plastic plants across the cosmos
My day job as a freelance science writer means exploring cutting edge science and the people behind it. I was recently given the opportunity to help celebrate the 40th anniversary of the EU’s first funding programme dedicated to science, research and innovation. It all started in 1984 with the launch of the Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development, worth €3.8 billion. I was part of the team producing a booklet packed with 40 success stories spanning everything from food to industrial innovation. I wrote the space section, with stories about space debris and the evolution of galaxies. I also contributed stories on ocean monitoring and recycling nappies (!) for the environment section. If you have a project that needs a science writer, by all means reach out to discuss it.
When I tell people I have given up trying to grow anything here, because the garden is too hot and too dry (not to mention too windy), I get the sense that my experience doesn’t resonate with them. But it certainly resonates with the RHS, which is busy relocating some of its plant collections to its newest garden - RHS Bridgewater near Manchester – as climate change makes the south east of England less hospitable.
Read more: The UK will get hotter and drier for plants … except in Manchester
ESA’s reserve astronauts – including Meganne Christian and John McFall (UK) are about to embark on a training course that covers selected modules of ESA’s one-year basic training programme, typically completed by career astronauts. The training will equip the members of the Astronaut Reserve with the skills needed to support Europe’s future space exploration and scientific research.
Read more: ESA Astronaut Reserve starts training in October
Botanists are partnering with flying paramotorists to survey rare vegetation in one of the most fragile and inaccessible landscapes in the world. Paramotoring is a slightly eccentric way of getting around, but with a small engine strapped to their back and suspended from a paraglider, paramotorists can travel faster than walking, in a way that is far more environmentally friendly than heading into fragile ecosystems driving a 4x4.
Read more: Flying high: Kew botanists and paramotorists survey rare plants in Peru
Scientists have shown how manipulating light according to the needs of specific crops in vertical farms could make them grow stronger and healthier while minimizing energy use.
Read more: Scientists explore how indoor vertical farming could help future-proof food demand
Watch it!
Thank you for reading the Gardeners of the Galaxy Mission Report — your support allows me to keep doing this work. You can now earn premium access by inviting friends and colleagues to subscribe and read.
I'll be back in your inboxes soon. Thanks for reading and being part of the Gardeners of the Galaxy community.
Ex solo ad astra,
Emma (Space Gardener)