Algae could be instrumental in making human exploration of Mars possible

Whereas the world is marveling over the first images and data now coming from NASA’s Perseverance rover mission searching for indicators of historical microscopic life on Mars, a workforce of UNLV scientists is already laborious at work on the subsequent step: What if we may one day ship people to the Pink Planet?

There’s loads to think about when sending individuals, although. Human explorers, in contrast to their rover counterparts, require oxygen and meals, for starters. It additionally takes about six to 9 months—each methods—simply in travel time. After which there’s the air itself. Martian air is roughly 98% carbon dioxide (Earth’s is a fraction of 1% for comparability) and the air temperature averages a particularly frigid -81 levels.

It is these challenges that UNLV geochemist and NASA Mars 2020 workforce scientist Libby Hausrath and postdoctoral researcher Leena Cycil, a microbial ecologist, are exploring. And a giant a part of the reply? Algae.

“Extremophilic algae” are sorts of algae identified for his or her means to thrive in extreme environments corresponding to high-altitude snowy mountains or hypersaline lakes. These algae love carbon dioxide and might use it to provide oxygen. In addition they are edible, dense with vitamins, and develop rapidly. Extremophiles’ useful traits permit them to develop in among the most inhospitable environments on Earth, probably even in circumstances just like Mars.

“If we wish to accomplish long-term space exploration with individuals as an alternative of rovers and robots, it should require creating a self-sustaining life help system—meals and breathable air,” says Cycil.

Hausrath and Cycil are amongst a handful of scientists taking a look at rising algae below the low-pressure, low-light circumstances seen on Mars, and are pursuing completely different species than earlier research.

Early outcomes are promising. To this point, they’ve recognized three species of algae that present substantial progress below excessive circumstances. They used a low-pressure vacuum chamber to simulate atmospheric pressures related to Mars and topped it with a plate of tempered glass to permit gentle in at half the sun publicity current on Earth.

The three strains of algae are Dunaliella salina, which is usually discovered worldwide in salt lakes; Chloromonas brevispina, which exists in snowy climates; and Chlorella vulgaris, primarily used as a protein complement or protein-rich meals additive, which is commonly present in pure and engineered freshwater and soil habitats.

“We really have been stunned the algae grew at these low pressures. They might be thriving in these excessive environments on Earth, however the atmospheric strain on Mars is significantly decrease, so we have been skeptical of what the end result can be,” says Cycil.

Their findings on low strain progress have been revealed in Frontiers of Microbiology, with one other publication on rising algae in low gentle ranges coming in early 2023.

The workforce strategically research one variable at a time to grasp precisely how every impacts progress.

They’re isolating sure traits in every algae species to study what mixture of algae traits are finest fitted to Mars. For instance, having algae that develop at low strain is doubtlessly extra vital than progress with a particular sort of lighting as a result of lighting is simpler to govern than strain. The hope is that the lab circumstances could possibly be recreated in greenhouses on the floor of the Pink Planet.

“Understanding genetic variations that permit the algae to develop will help with the design of eventual life help programs and potential greenhouses on Mars,” says Hausrath.

Hausrath and Cycil are already working with a NASA engineer on functions for his or her work. Their examine exhibits these organisms can produce oxygen at ranges akin to what individuals must survive, however engineers would be the ones to place that into apply.

The case for algae

Hausrath and Cycil’s work is a part of making ready for future short-term human exploration of Mars, the place astronauts—as an alternative of rovers—will conduct additional experiments and acquire extra data of the planet and its historical past. Finally, these visits will assist decide if Mars can help human habitation.

“You possibly can examine it to the space station missions paving the best way for what we’re seeing now within the commercialization of space flights. In time, business firms will take our analysis towards manned long-term space journey and broaden on it and what we all know will develop exponentially,” explains Cycil. “We’re studying from the rock and soil samples being returned from the rover mission, however there are different issues we will not accomplish with robotics.”

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College of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV)