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NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Students Planting Research Of Use To Space (SPROUTS) Networking and Engagement of Interns at Kennedy Space Center

While Kennedy Space Center (KSC) has had summer interns in the life sciences for many years, beginning in 2016, the internship program was re-envisioned. Rather than having many interns in the summer with numerous innovative small projects created primarily for this purpose, the current model is to offer internship opportunities every semester (Spring, Summer, and Fall), so that research is continuous and sustained. Since 2016 we have had 64 internship opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students in the areas of space crop production and microgravity simulation support. Some students have participated in more than one opportunity, so 52 separate individuals have participated in this program. While interns primarily worked with individual mentors on a main project, most also worked on group projects with other interns or developed smaller secondary projects on their own initiative. In addition, all interns participated in a weekly Lunch, Learn, and Discuss seminar series where they were encouraged to present their research, learn from scientists at KSC, and engage with members of the space life sciences community. When the face-to-face spring internship of 2020 ended prematurely, we resumed the weekly seminar series as a virtual event, and this led to the concept of engaging former interns. Current and former interns were invited to participate in the on-going virtual series, and 46 asked to be included on the mailing list. Our current seminar series involves remote seminars or hosted discussions from contacts within and outside of the agency, and engages a large network of current scientists and former interns with an weekly participation averaging 40-50 people. Speakers include experts from industry, academia, and other space agencies working on topics of interest to KSC space life science researchers. In addition, this series has served as a brain trust and brainstorming mechanism for KSC scientists to invite and discuss new ideas and concepts. The advent of remote work and virtual platforms has allowed us to engage with interns in a new way that will continue as future interns are integrated into this network of individuals interested in space research. This work is funded by NASA’s Space Biology Program.

Internships↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Plasma Activated Water Developments for Lunar and Martian Applications

Plasma activated water (PAW) would be of great use for space applications, due to the myriad of on-demand uses. Some of these applications were directly explored at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center including: Space crop production, Martian systems, and acid-base production. The presence of any nitrogen in the gas stream, including in a simulated Martian atmospheric composition, allows for nitrates to form in water during plasma treatment. These nitrates form nitric acid and drive down the pH while also being in a readily useable form by plants. Inedible biomass ash, which can be created using the same plasma system that treats the water, can be added into the acidic PAW to raise the pH. Measured pH values ranged from 2.7 to 11.5 using this process. Both the nitrates and the nutrients from the inedible biomass are beneficial for the plants, and the pH control allows for use with many different plant species. This methodology is also enabling for space-based hydroponic systems. At KSC, growth studies of Cherry Belle radishes showed comparable dry masses of edible biomass grown with Hoagland’s nutrient solution (a best-case scenario solution that is impractical for launch transportation) and the edible biomass grown with plasma water with the added ash. Both solutions showed substantial improvements over the deionized water that is most similar to what is available in Space systems via the water processor assembly. Additionally, the ability to produce both acidic PAW and basic PAW has benefits for sanitation as well. Preliminary studies showed a 5.8 log reduction of P. Aeruginosa when exposed to PAW mixtures, which shows the ability to remove this common biofilm.

Ryan Patrick Gott↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

VEG-04 PICK-AND-EAT CROP PRODUCTION AND HUMAN RESEARCH ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

Growing fresh, nutritious, palatable produce for crew consumption during spaceflight may provide health-promoting, bioavailable nutrients and enhance the astronaut dietary experience as we move toward longer-duration missions. Tending plants may also serve as a countermeasure for crew psychological stresses associated with spaceflight. However, requirements to support consistent growth of a variety of nutritious crops under spaceflight environmental conditions remain unclear. This study explores the potential to grow crops for consumption on the International Space Station (ISS) using the Veggie vegetable-production system. VEG-04A and B were two flight tests conducted in 2019 with the leafy green crop Mizuna mustard. Mizuna was grown in two Veggie chambers simultaneously, with the chambers set to different red-to-blue light formulations; one Veggie was programmed as “red-rich” and the second as “blue-rich.” Light quality is known to impact plant growth, nutrition, microbiology, and organoleptic characteristics on Earth, and the Veggie flight tests examined how these impacts might differ in microgravity. VEG-04A was a 35-day growth test with a single harvest. VEG-04B, a 58-day test with harvests at four, six, and eight weeks from the same plants, assessed sustained productivity. Challenges with the watering program occurred early during VEG-04A, and several plants failed to survive in both the flight and ground control operations. Thus, prior to VEG-04B, an extra test was conducted to tailor water timing and volumes. This test allowed a fine tuning of methods for VEG-04B, and generally plant survival was better in that experiment. At each harvest, the astronauts froze half of the edible plant tissue to return to Earth and weighed the remaining half using the ISS Mass Measurement Device (MMD). Weighed samples were then cleaned with produce-sanitizing wipes, and consenting crew members participated in organoleptic evaluation of the fresh produce. Organoleptic evaluations were conducted on the Mizuna crops grown in both light treatments, and data from these tests are compared to ground data collected at JSC. The remaining sanitized produce was available for crew consumption as desired. Frozen flight samples were returned for microbial and chemical analyses to assess food safety and nutritional quality. Microbial assessments included culturing and identifying aerobic bacteria, yeasts, and molds, and screening for specific human pathogens. Chemical nutrient analyses included assessing elements, antioxidants, and phenolics in plant tissues. Crew members involved in plant operations completed behavioral health surveys pre-flight, in-flight associated with plant growth and harvest activities, and post-flight. Surveys captured the amount of time spent on different plant-related operations, enjoyment of the different activities, engagement with Veggie, experience interacting with Veggie, and sensory stimulation associated with growing plants in Veggie. Within each study, plant growth did not differ across light treatment or location (flight versus ground). In general, more biomass was produced in most treatments during the longer study, but growth of this crop declined over time with the repeated harvests. On average, bacterial and fungal counts were significantly lower on ground control samples than flight samples, and microbial counts increased with repeated harvests. Light treatment did not influence any elements in tissues tested; however, the growth duration did impact levels of several elements. Organoleptic scores were generally higher in flight, and ground tasters considered samples more bitter. Amount of interaction and responses to Veggie varied widely by individual. Enjoyable tasks had higher impact than non-enjoyable tasks and interacting with Veggie was generally viewed as positive. These tests on ISS are helping to mitigate the risk of an inadequate food supply for long-duration missions by adding fresh vegetables and key nutrients to the crew diet, and indicating which plant care activities are providing behavioral health benefits for the crew. This research was co-funded by the Human Research Program and Space Biology (MTL#1075) in the ILSRA 2015 NRA call. Videos due Jan. 25th.

Veggie↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Smart Crop Farming Systems for Artemis Exploration Missions

Space crop production systems that mitigate risks of crew poor performance or illness due to inadequate food and nutrition are needed during manned Artemis exploration missions beyond LEO. Prototype farms must be designed for deployment on ISS and tested in manned platforms: Gateway, lunar habitats, and Mars trans-hab spacecraft in preparation for human missions to Mars. Food production must be optimal and safe for human consumption. Thus, plant growth facilities (i.e. Veggie and APH) can be enhanced with imaging systems (including hyperspectral, multispectral, lidar, and fluorescence imaging systems) for nondestructive monitoring of plant health, stress and assessing food safety. Databases of crop responses to stress obtained during ground studies can be used to develop novel artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms for optimizing crop production (i.e. environmental settings during growth) and for detecting crop indices that ensure food safety. Future farming systems should be sustainable and smart. Novel adaptive AI algorithms requiring limited data sets for calibration are needed for reducing crew intervention during plant cultivation except for maintenance and harvesting events. Eventually, AI driven control systems that include autonomous planting, growing, and harvesting as well as periodic sanitization need evaluation for supplementing crew diets with fresh produce during future Mars exploration missions.

O Monje↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Understanding the Impacts of Deep Space Environment on Crop Production

NASA’s goal of developing sustainable habitats to support long duration, deep space missions requires advanced science, technology, and engineering. Understanding the integrated, long-term effects of deep space environments on biological systems is needed. Sustainable habitats require the production of food and oxygen on site.

Bruce M Link↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

VEG-05 Tomato Crop Testing on the International Space Station

Production of fresh, nutritious, and tasty produce for astronauts during spaceflight may provide health-promoting, bioavailable nutrients, enhance the dietary experience, and reduce menu fatigue as we move into longer-duration missions. Growing and caring for plants may also reduce the psychological stresses associated with spaceflight and enhance connection to Earth. A diversity of crops will be required to provide nutrition, variety, and resiliency, however requirements for consistent growth under spaceflight environmental conditions remain unclear. VEG-05 is part of a series of experiments with pick-and-eat salad crops to better define best practices for crop production in space. VEG-05 and predecessor experiments VEG-04A and VEG-04B, grew salad crops in the Veggie vegetable production facilities on the International Space Station using different lighting treatments. In VEG-05 we grew ‘Red Robin’ dwarf cherry tomatoes under two different red: blue lighting spectra. Light can impact the growth habit, yield, nutritional composition, microbial levels, and even flavor attributes within crops, and our goal was to assess these characteristics in ‘Red Robin’ tomatoes during VEG-05. Considerable pre-flight verification testing was performed prior to launch in Nov. 2022. Prior to the flight and ground experiments, lighting in both Veggie units on ISS was measured and lights were standardized between flight and ground hardware. VEG-05 flight operations ran between December 2022 and March 2023, with a ground control initially 48 hours delayed. Due to environmental challenges of very low humidity during the first week of the experiment, seed germination was low for both flight and ground plants. The flight experiment ultimately had 4 - 5 plants per treatment out of the planned 6 plants, but the initial ground control had only three plants in one treatment and none in the other, so this ground control was restarted at the beginning of Feb. 2023 and ran through May, with successful growth of all 12 plants. Both flight and ground control ran 100 days, with harvests of fruit at day 83, day 90, and day 100. Flight plants had uneven growth, and following the early drying events, excess water was frequently observed, which led to a variety of plant stress responses including uneven plant growth, excess adventitious root formation, flower and fruit abortion, and visible microbial growth. In total, from the five surviving red-rich lighted plants, only 5 ripe fruit were produced, and from the four surviving blue-rich lighted plants, 10 fruit were produced with only 6 of these ripe by day 100. Because of the small fruit number and the unsatisfactory growth, crew members were not allowed to consume the tomatoes, and all fruit, as well as large branches with leaves, samples of the adventitious roots, two plant rooting pillows from each treatment, microbial sampling swabs, and some water samples were returned for analysis. Because of the small sample sizes and factors affecting growth on the ISS, objectives of assessing light quality effect (red: blue light treatments) will not be achieved. Revised objectives of this study include to compare stressed flight plants with normal ground plants to determine the impact of plant overwatering stress in space on food safety and the plant microbial community, to determine nutrient content changes in fruit and leaves from stressed plants, and to evaluate stress metabolism changes in returned tissue by transcriptomic analysis. Postflight analysis is underway with the following analyses being conducted: A. culturable microbiology and food safety as well as molecular microbial community analysis of 1. ripe fruit, 2. leaves, stems, and adventitious roots, 3. pillow components (roots, wicks, and substrates), 4. swabs, and 5. water samples from root mats before and after growth. B. transcriptomics of leaf tissue and adventitious roots, and C. elemental analysis of leaf tissue. If sufficient tissue remains elemental analyses will also be conducted on fruit. While not generating the desired information on spaceflight growth responses of healthy crops, our team is hopeful that these analyses will shed light on tomato responses to stress in this environment as plant overwatering stress is a mission-relevant condition that could occur in future space crop growth systems. This research was co-funded by the Human Research Program and Space Biology (MTL#1075) in the ILSRA 2015 NRA call.

Gioia D. Massa↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Verification Testing and Veg-05 Tomato Crop Production on the International Space Station

VEG-05 is an experiment to better define best practices for crop production and handling in space. Light can impact the growth habit, yield, nutritional composition, microbial levels, and flavor within crops and VEG-05 used the Veggie facilities on the International Space Station to grow ‘Red Robin’ dwarf tomatoes under different spectral compositions to assess these characteristics. Prior to launch, both a science verification test (SVT), and an experiment verification test (EVT) were conducted. SVT, and a previous fertilizer test, grew plants in both plant pillows and PONDS units and tested different fertilizer treatments, with each test under one of the light conditions. EVT used only plant pillows with the highest fertilizer composition tested, and two Veggie units were utilized. One Veggie had light settings consisting of equal levels of red: blue light while the second Veggie had a 90:10 ratio of red: blue light, both with the addition of ~10% green. For SVT, under the equal red: blue light treatment, fruit ripening in plant pillows was delayed. For EVT we saw fruit ripening earlier, especially in the red-rich treatment. In SVT we had mostly daily watering, and this led to excess water in plant pillows which leaked and caused fungus to grow. We reduced this excess in EVT, however, wilting events occurred. Regardless, more than 10 fruit were produced from each plant on average, with the high red treatment producing slightly heavier fruit. Microbial testing from fruit indicated that fruit were safe for consumption. VEG-05 flight operations ran December 2022 and March 2023, with considerable challenges in watering and unexpectedly low humidity on ISS during critical periods. Only 12 ripe fruit formed, and all were returned. Fruit and other samples are currently being analyzed. This research was co-funded by NASA’s Human Research Program and Space Biology.

Gioia Donna Massa↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Verification Testing and VEG-05 Tomato Crop Production on the International Space Station

VEG-05 is an experiment to better define best practices for crop production and handling in space. Light can impact the growth habit, yield, nutritional composition, microbial levels, and flavor within crops and VEG-05 used the Veggie facilities on the International Space Station to grow ‘Red Robin’ dwarf tomatoes under different spectral compositions to assess these characteristics. Prior to launch, both a science verification test (SVT), and an experiment verification test (EVT) were conducted. SVT, and a previous fertilizer test, grew plants in both plant pillows and PONDS units and tested different fertilizer treatments, with each test under one of the light conditions. EVT used only plant pillows with the highest fertilizer composition tested, and two Veggie units were utilized. One Veggie had light settings consisting of equal levels of red: blue light while the second Veggie had a 90:10 ratio of red: blue light, both with the addition of ~10% green. For SVT, under the equal red: blue light treatment, fruit ripening in plant pillows was delayed. For EVT we saw fruit ripening earlier, especially in the red-rich treatment. In SVT we had mostly daily watering, and this led to excess water in plant pillows which leaked and caused fungus to grow. We reduced this excess in EVT, however, wilting events occurred. Regardless, more than 10 fruit were produced from each plant on average, with the high red treatment producing slightly heavier fruit. Microbial testing from fruit indicated that fruit were safe for consumption. VEG-05 flight operations ran December 2022 and March 2023, with considerable challenges in watering and unexpectedly low humidity on ISS during critical periods. Only 12 ripe fruit formed, and all were returned. Fruit and other samples are currently being analyzed. This research was co-funded by NASA’s Human Research Program and Space Biology.

Gioia D. Massa↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Verification Testing and Veg-05 Tomato Crop Production on the International Space Station

Production of fresh, nutritious, and tasty produce for astronauts during spaceflight may provide health-promoting, bioavailable nutrients and enhance the dietary experience as we move into longer-duration missions. Growing and caring for plants may also reduce the psychological stresses associated with spaceflight and enhance connections to Earth. Requirements to consistently grow a diversity of crops under spaceflight environmental conditions remain poorly defined. The VEG-05 experiment is part of a series of experiments with pick-and-eat salad crops to better define best practices for crop production and handling in space. VEG-05 and predecessor experiments VEG-04A and VEG-04B, use the Veggie vegetable production facilities on the International Space Station to grow salad crops under different spectral compositions. In VEG-04A and B, mizuna mustard was cultivated with two different red: blue light treatments, and in VEG-05 we are cultivating ‘Red Robin’ dwarf cherry tomatoes under the same light spectra. Light can impact the growth habit, yield, nutritional composition, microbial levels, and even flavor attributes within crops, and our team will assess these characteristics for this crop during VEG-05. Prior to launch and installation on ISS in late 2022, both a science verification test (SVT), and an experiment verification test (EVT) were conducted at Kennedy Space Center in ISS Environment Simulator Chambers. Science verification testing, and a previous fertilizer test, grew plants in both plant pillows and PONDS (Passive Orbital Nutrient Delivery System) units and tested two different fertilizer treatments in both sets of hardware, with each test under only one of the light conditions. Because of challenges validating the PONDS hardware on ISS, and with good crop production in plant pillows, the EVT moved forward using only plant pillows with the highest fertilizer composition tested during SVT, and two Veggie units were utilized. One Veggie had light settings consisting of equal levels of red: blue light (150 µmol/m2/s for each color) plus green light (30 µmol/m2/s) while the second Veggie had a 90:10 ratio of red: blue light (270 µmol/m2/s red and 30 µmol/m2/s blue) plus green, so each unit provided 330 µmol/m2/s of photosynthetically active radiation to the tomato crops on average. Our original plan, based on prior ground testing, was to grow the crop for 104 days and harvest at 80, 90 and 104 days after initiation. For SVT, under the equal red: blue light treatment, fruit ripening in plant pillows was delayed and fruit were not ripe by day 80, so actual harvest days were days 90, 97, and 104. For EVT we saw fruit ripening earlier, especially in the high red treatment, and so we harvested at days 83, 90, and 99 days after initiation. In SVT we had mostly daily watering, and this led to excess water in plant pillows, which leaked out. This excess water also caused fungus to grow on one leaf and a couple of plant stems. To reduce this excess moisture, we throttled back the watering for EVT, and used the root mat reservoir more frequently. This led to watering only every other day, reducing crew time needed for plant care, however, two wilting events occurred during this EVT, at days 51 and 75. Plants recovered from these wilting events, but these events may have influenced the rate of fruit ripening and flower formation. Regardless, more than 10 fruit were produced from each plant on average, with the high red treatment producing slightly heavier fruit. Microbial testing from fruit during SVT indicated that fruit were safe for consumption with microbial levels below detection limits. VEG-05 flight and ground operations are expected to run between December 2022 and March 2023. This research was co-funded by the Human Research Program and Space Biology (MTL#1075) in the ILSRA 2015 NRA call.

Gioia D. Massa↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Crew Time Requirements in Future Space Greenhouses: What Can We Infer from Current Analog and Space Missions?

Efficient crop production will be required to advance humanity’s presence in space, and for this, accurate predictions of crew time in future space greenhouse modules will be crucial to design and operate these plant growth systems, and schedule crop production. Crew time estimates will also be critical for deciding priorities of automating different aspects of space crop production. Because it is difficult to capture in operational environments, crew time for plant cultivation has only been sporadically recorded in past analog and space missions. We propose a methodology for efficient categorizing and reporting of crew time in space plant growth systems: first identify the different tasks needed to operate the greenhouse module, second define a representative time period for data collection, third accurately report crew time for individual tasks - and their occurrence, and fourth use collected data to improve greenhouse modules and plant growth system designs. Using data from various analog facilities and from the Veggie hardware on ISS, and assumptions for different mission scenarios, we discuss how crew time for plant cultivation can be reduced with adequate choices of crops, automation, artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual assistants, and sufficient crew training. This has major implications for the design of future space greenhouse modules. For example, missions on future space stations or during interplanetary travel would save significant crew time by including leafy greens and microgreens for astronaut’s diet supplement, with automated watering, health and environmental checks, as well as AI managing maintenance schedules, and a virtual assistant for repair activities. This work was funded by NASA Space Biology through NASA postdoctoral program / USRA, by NASA’s Space Biology and Human Research Programs, and by the European Union Horizon 2020 program via the COMPET-07-2014 - Space exploration – Life-support subprogram (reference number: 636501).

Veggie↗
NASA NTRS2004

Advanced Life Support Project: Crop Experiments at Kennedy Space Center

Crop production systems provide bioregenerative technologies to complement human crew life support requirements on long duration space missions. Kennedy Space Center has lead NASA's research on crop production systems that produce high value fresh foods, provide atmospheric regeneration, and perform water processing. As the emphasis on early missions to Mars has developed, our research focused on modular, scalable systems for transit missions, which can be developed into larger autonomous, bioregenerative systems for subsequent surface missions. Components of these scalable systems will include development of efficient light generating or collecting technologies, low mass plant growth chambers, and capability to operate in the high energy background radiation and reduced atmospheric pressures of space. These systems will be integrated with air, water, and thermal subsystems in an operational system. Extensive crop testing has been done for both staple and salad crops, but limited data is available on specific cultivar selection and breadboard testing to meet nominal Mars mission profiles of a 500-600 day surface mission. The recent research emphasis at Kennedy Space Center has shifted from staple crops, such as wheat, soybean and rice, toward short cycle salad crops such as lettuce, onion, radish, tomato, pepper, and strawberry. This paper will review the results of crop experiments to support the Exploration Initiative and the ongoing development of supporting technologies, and give an overview of capabilities of the newly opened Space Life Science (SLS) Lab at Kennedy Space Center. The 9662 square m (104,000 square ft) SLS Lab was built by the State of Florida and supports all NASA research that had been performed in Hanger-L. In addition to NASA research, the SLS Lab houses the Florida Space Research Institute (FSRI), responsible for co-managing the facility, and the University of Florida (UF) has established the Space Agriculture and Biotechnology Research and Education (SABRE) Center with several faculty.

Sager, John C.↗
NASA NTRS2017

Future Food Production System Development Pulling from Space Biology Crop Growth Testing in Veggie

Preliminary crop testing using Veggie indicates the environmental conditions provided by the ISS are generally suitable for food crop production. When plant samples were returned to Earth for analysis, their levels of nutrients were comparable to Earth-grown ground controls. Veggie-grown produce food safety microbiology analysis indicated that space-grown crops are safe to consume. Produce sanitizing wipes were used on-orbit to further reduce risk of foodborne illness. Validation growth tests indicated abiotic challenges of insufficient or excess fluid delivery, potentially reduced air flow leading to excess water, elevated CO2 leading to physiological responses, and microorganisms that became opportunistic pathogens. As NASA works to develop future space food production, several areas of research to define these systems pull from the Veggie technology validation tests. Research into effective, reusable water delivery and water recovery methods for future food production systems arises from abiotic challenges observed. Additionally, impacts of elevated CO2 and refinement of fertilizer and light recipes for crops needs to be assessed. Biotic pulls include methods or technologies to effectively sanitize produce with few consumables and low inputs; work to understand the phytomicrobiome and potentially use it to protect crops or enhance growth; selection of crops with high harvest index and desirable flavors for supplemental nutrition; crops that provide psychosocial benefits, and custom space crop development. Planning for future food production in a deep space gateway or a deep space transit vehicle requires methods of handling and storing seeds, and ensuring space seeds are free of contaminants and long-lived. Space food production systems may require mechanization and autonomous operation, with preliminary testing initiated to identify operations and capabilities that are candidates for automation. Food production design is also pulling from Veggie logistics lessons, as we learn about growing at different scales and move toward developing systems that require less launch mass. Veggie will be used as a test bed for novel food production technologies. Veggie is a relatively simple precursor food production system but the knowledge gained from space biology validation tests in Veggie will have far reaching repercussions on future exploration food production.

Veggie↗
NASA NTRS2017

Future Food Production System Development Pulling From Space Biology Crop Growth Testing in Veggie

Preliminary crop testing using Veggie indicates the environmental conditions provided by the ISS are generally suitable for food crop production. When plant samples were returned to Earth for analysis, their levels of nutrients were comparable to Earth-grown ground controls. Veggie-grown produce food safety microbiology analysis indicated that space-grown crops are safe to consume. Produce sanitizing wipes were used on-orbit to further reduce risk of foodborne illness. Validation growth tests indicated abiotic challenges of insufficient or excess fluid delivery, potentially reduced air flow leading to excess water, elevated CO2 leading to physiological responses, and microorganisms that became opportunistic pathogens. As NASA works to develop future space food production, several areas of research to define these systems pull from the Veggie technology validation tests. Research into effective, reusable water delivery and water recovery methods for future food production systems arises from abiotic challenges observed. Additionally, impacts of elevated CO2 and refinement of fertilizer and light recipes for crops needs to be assessed. Biotic pulls include methods or technologies to effectively sanitize produce with few consumables and low inputs; work to understand the phytomicrobiome and potentially use it to protect crops or enhance growth; selection of crops with high harvest index and desirable flavors for supplemental nutrition; crops that provide psychosocial benefits, and custom space crop development. Planning for future food production in a deep space gateway or a deep space transit vehicle requires methods of handling and storing seeds, and ensuring space seeds are free of contaminants and long-lived. Space food production systems may require mechanization and autonomous operation, with preliminary testing initiated to identify operations and capabilities that are candidates for automation. Food production design is also pulling from Veggie logistics lessons, as we learn about growing at different scales and move toward developing systems that require less launch mass. Veggie will be used as a test bed for novel food production technologies. Veggie is a relatively simple precursor food production system but the knowledge gained from space biology validation tests in Veggie will have far reaching repercussions on future exploration food production. This work is supported by NASA.

Plants↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Crew Time Requirements in Future Space Greenhouses - What Can We Infer from Current Analog and Space Missions?

Efficient crop production will be required to advance humanity’s presence in space, and for this, accurate predictions of crew time in future space greenhouse modules will be crucial to design and operate these plant growth systems, and schedule crop production. Crew time estimates will also be critical for deciding priorities of automating different aspects of space crop production. Because it is difficult to capture in operational environments, crew time for plant cultivation has only been sporadically recorded in past analog and space missions. We propose a methodology for efficient categorizing and reporting of crew time in space plant growth systems: first identify the different tasks needed to operate the greenhouse module, second define a representative time period for data collection, third accurately report crew time for individual tasks - and their occurrence, and fourth use collected data to improve greenhouse modules and plant growth system designs. Using data from various analog facilities and from the Veggie hardware on ISS, and assumptions for different mission scenarios, we discuss how crew time for plant cultivation can be reduced with adequate choices of crops, automation, artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual assistants, and sufficient crew training. This has major implications for the design of future space greenhouse modules. For example, missions on future space stations or during interplanetary travel would save significant crew time by including leafy greens and microgreens for astronaut’s diet supplement, with automated watering, health and environmental checks, as well as AI managing maintenance schedules, and a virtual assistant for repair activities. This work was funded by NASA Space Biology through NASA postdoctoral program / USRA, by NASA’s Space Biology and Human Research Programs, and by the European Union Horizon 2020 program via the COMPET-07-2014 - Space exploration – Life-support subprogram (reference number: 636501).

Lucie Poulet↗