I am currently investigating if it is possible to grow crops on simulant Mars and moon soil to feed future settlers as part of Food For Mars and Moon (FFMM) project. Can we grow crops on Mars and the moon using Mars...
I am currently investigating if it is possible to grow crops on simulant Mars and moon soil to feed future settlers as part of Food For Mars and Moon (FFMM) project. Can we grow crops on Mars and the moon using Mars or moon regolith and ice? We are able to grow over a dozen different crop species on Mars and moon like soils. Currently, we are developing a closed sustainable agricultural ecosystem for Mars and the moon, in an indoor setting. This includes Earthworms, bacteria, fungi, pollinators and humans.
The FFMM research is partly based on ongoing research about the relation between plant occurrence and soil characteristics in natural areas. This resulted in an indicator system for plant species, that can be used to make an estimate of the soil parameters, as soil pH.
The plant species play also a role in the modelling of the combined effects of nitrogen deposition and climate change on carbon sequestration and biodiversity I am involved in, one of the key issues in today’s biodiversity conservation.