The scientists aren't implying that space travelers should munch on actual rocks
Scientists have introduced a novel concept to ensure food safety for astronauts on long-duration deep space missions. A study published in The International Journal of Astrobiology suggests that astronauts could use asteroids to meet their nutritional needs.
While they won't be eating rocks directly, the idea is to extract and convert the carbon from space rocks into something edible. This concept addresses the limitations of the amount of dried food astronauts can carry and space farming hasn't evolved yet.
Joshua Pearce, an engineering professor at Western University in Ontario, highlighted to The New York Times that asteroids share similarities with plastics regarding how microbes interact with them.
The study, led by researchers from Michigan Technological University, drew inspiration from a U.S. Department of Defense project that converted plastic waste into edible food. This process, called pyrolysis, breaks down plastic into solids, gas, and oil. The oil is then fed to bacteria in a bioreactor, producing a nutritious biomass.
In separate research, Annemiek Waajen of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam fed pieces of meteorites that had fallen to Earth to microbes. Her findings, published in Astrobiology and Scientific Reports, revealed that the microbes thrived on the meteorite material.
Using this data, Dr. Pearce and his team focused on the asteroid Bennu, calculating that its carbon content- when broken down by microbes, even inefficiently- could sustain astronauts for up to 600 years.
However, there remains a critical challenge: extensive toxicity testing is needed to ensure that the biomass created for astronauts is safe to eat.
"It's still a long way off," said Dr. Waajen, who was not involved in the main study.