INTRODUCTION

ABOUT PLANTS

However, there are many challenges we need to solve.

We have to find a way to plant crops in a transit mission to other planets and have the required nutrients for the crew members. We have to manage how we can water the plants and not use much resources.

All plants need these six things to grow: room to grow, the right temperature, light, water, air, nutrients

While there is no gravity, water distribution is difficult to manage, the roots are often starved of oxygen so the root need room to spread out to absorb water and nutrients and stagnant reduces evaporation and increases the leaf temperature.

OUR SOLUTION

Absence of Gravity

In the absence of gravity, plants use other environmental factors, such as light, to orient themselves and guide growth.

Soil

We decided to put charcoal in our soil (our local wisdom) because it increases the soil's ability to hold onto plant nutrients and beneficial soil microbes by slowing or reducing the leaching of nutrients by rain or watering. The low density of charcoal lightens heavy soils, which allows better root growth, increasing drainage and allowing air into the soil. Charcoal can retain its carbon in the soil for up to 50,000 years, help increase crop yields, and also reduce water runoff.

Watering System

Because there is no gravity in space, we cannot just simply pour out the water and expect it to go into the dirt but, using pressure, we can push water out of PPR pipes into the dirt easily. PPR are pipes suitable for high pressures and are more durable than normal plastic PVC pipes. These pipes are perfect for long space missions where astronauts would be spending years in space. This is because the pressure is not directly affected by gravity. By pushing water into covered pipes with small holes in them, the water will be pushed out through the small holes in the pipes, saturing the dirt.

Light

Space can be a dark place. Providing light in space uses up a lot of power. Special lights are being developed to provide light for the plants without using so much electricity. A bank of light emitting diodes (LEDs) above the plants produces a spectrum of light suited for the plants’ growth. Since plants reflect a lot of green light and use more red and blue wavelengths.

Wavelengths we can use:

Wavelength 400 - 600 nanometer (Blue) → encourages plant growth Wavelength 600 - 700 nanometer (Red) → encourages flowering and budding

With this information we can create 2 types of Red Planet Vertical Farms, one with blue light to encourage plant growth for them to be eaten and another with red light to encourage flowering and budding to produce new plants. Although the plants we have chosen for the mission will regrow if are cut off correctly, the 2 types of Red Planet Vertical Farms can supply the seeds for the plants that will need to be removed entirely.

The excess CO2 that would be changed to CH4 and sent out into space could be used to supply the plants with CO2. Space X is planning to create a space shuttle to be able to land without its own destruction so with the remaining H2, we can use it as fuel for the trip back to Earth from Mars. In addition to this, the water vapor collected could be put back into the closed watering system and the O2 produced from the Red Planet Vertical Farm can be used for the astronauts to breathe.

Sensors in the Model

Infrared Sensor - The infrared sensor will detect changes in temperature and will send output to the infrared light bulb. This light bulb will light up and provide heat to be the perfect temperature for each kind of plant

CO2 Sensor - This sensor will detect the percentage of CO2 in the air. This information is then sent to the ventilation system which will release CO2 and create a flow of air in an amount that will increase the CO2 levels to a point which is perfect for each kind of plant.

Humidity Sensor - The humidity sensor can detect the humidity of the sensors and increase the water vapor from the humidifiers and create a flow of air to, ultimately, increase the humidity to the specific plant's needs.

Microcontroller - A microcontroller will be controlling the mathematics behind the scenes to ensure that the amount of CO2, heat, and humidity will be in the right amount so that the plants will have the best growing environment.

Lighting

The lighting of the environment can have a huge effect on how the plant develops. As said above, blue light encourages growth while red light encourages flowering and budding. This will be used specific to the species of plants. For example, we will need to add red light to the Strawberry's environment to encourage flowering and fruiting while we will need to add blue light to Green Onions to encourage growth.

Resources:

• https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/150/9/2242/5870322 https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/how-do-scientists-build-the-best-diet-for-astronauts

• https://2021.spaceappschallenge.org/challenges/statements/have-seeds-will-travel/details

• https://www.lampsplus.com/ideas-and-advice/grow-lights-for-indoor-plants-_2d00_-getting-started/

• https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/space_nutrition_book.pdf

• https://www.nasa.gov/content/growing-plants-in-space

• https://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/radishes-growing-in-space-nasa-iss

• https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20050210002/downloads/20050210002.pdf

• https://science.howstuffworks.com/carbon-dioxide-eliminated-aboard-spacecraft.htm

• https://www.capegazette.com/article/add-charcoal-create-rich-quality-garden-soil/25068

• https://youtu.be/U_QPcG6VmiM

• https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/advanced-plant-habitat.pdf

• https://www.popsci.com/how-iss-recycles-air-and-water/

• https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/news/sabatier.html

Tools:

• Google Sites

• Procreate

• Goodnotes