With rising global warming and climate change, scientists are looking for alternate habitable options.
The red planet, Mars is one of the primary interests of scientists for building an Earth-like system. The farthest location in space humans have reached till now is the Moon. Currently, NASA is developing numerous technologies to send astronauts to the Red Planet by 2030. The scientists are also preparing complete life support systems to regenerate consumables including food, air, and water to survive on Mars. In this research, scientists came up with an exciting plant species that can grow and live on Mars. In this article, we will discuss about this unique plant and future prospects in space exploration.
As per article published by Chinese researchers in the journal ‘The Innovation’, Syntrichia caninervis (scientific name) plant might grow in harsh Mars environment. As per publication, this plant is able to resist extreme cold, drought and radiation levels.
This plant, also known as desert moss, is found in Antarctica and the Mojave desert. According to the publication, the plant was able to regenerate after being exposed “to gamma rays for up to 30 days at -196 Celsius and up to five years at -80 Celsius.” The desert moss was even able to recover from near-total dehydration environment.
Outcomes from Research: Understanding the potential, researchers created a Martian-like enviornment and kept the plant there by simulating temperature, UV radiation, pressure and gasses.
“Thus, S. caninervis can help drive the atmospheric, geological, and ecological processes required for other higher plants and animals while facilitating the creation of new habitable environments conducive to long-term human settlement,” the group of researchers mentioned.
Future Prospects in Space Exploration: The research team said: “The unique insights obtained in our study lay the foundation for outer space colonisation using naturally selected plants adapted to extreme stress conditions. Our study shows that the environmental resilience of S. caninervis is superior to that of some of highly stress-tolerant microorganisms and tardigrades. S. caninervis is a promising candidate pioneer plant for colonizing extraterrestrial environments, laying the foundation for building biologically sustainable human habitats beyond Earth.”
Couple of weeks ago, NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has captured a mysterious pit or hole situated on the side of the Arsia Mons volcano, which is now extinct. Usually, the entire solar system gets a lot of radiations which are harmful to human body. These holes can provide the suitable base camp for astronauts to prevent themselves from these radiations.
As per scientific articles, the first traveler to the Mars would be a female. This is because women need significantly fewer resources for a long-duration stay in space than men.
The Chinese researchers concluded: “Although there is still a long way to go to create self-sufficient habitats on other planets, we demonstrated the great potential of S. caninervis as a pioneer plant for growth on Mars. Looking to the future, we expect that this promising moss could be brought to Mars or the Moon to further test the possibility of plant colonization and growth in outer space.”
Will humans be able to establish homes to stay on the Mars? Let's hope it becomes reality someday!
