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The race for space exploration has never been more intense. National agencies and private firms are in fierce competition to delve deeper into the cosmos. Many are organizing ambitious missions to Mars, vying to become the first to land on the red planet.
However, a journey to Mars would take several years. One of the biggest challenges facing space agencies is how to ensure astronauts are well-fed during such extended missions. In the ’60s and ’70s, astronauts made do with freeze-dried meals, but those missions were much shorter—and the food wasn’t exactly appetizing.
Fortunately, creative culinary teams are developing inventive ways to escape the monotony of bland, often nutritionally poor space meals. Here are ten of their most ingenious solutions.
10. Farmbots That Can “Sense” How Their Plants Are Growing
The ARC Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space is experimenting with various methods to cultivate food in space—food that is diverse and nutritious, rather than relying on the monotonous freeze-dried meals astronauts currently have access to.
One approach involves farmbots—programmable robots that perform the duties of Earth-based farmers. These green-thumbed machines plant seeds, manage irrigation, apply disease-resistant sprays, and harvest crops once they’re mature. They are fitted with digital sensors and AI, helping them monitor the growth of the plants.
Researchers in Melbourne have developed a component called the e-nose. This device “smells” the scents emitted by plants, allowing it to track their needs. Additionally, facial recognition technology is being used to analyze astronauts’ reactions to their food and explore how microgravity affects taste.
At present, this technology remains on Earth. However, with the renewed excitement around space exploration and the push for longer missions, it’s possible that farmbots may become a reality in the future.
9. 3D-Printed Pills Inspired by Willy Wonka
Farmbots aren't the only innovation the Australian team is working on. They have several concepts for producing high-quality food while journeying through space. One such concept involves microencapsulated pills that can be 3D printed, reminiscent of something from Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory.
In Roald Dahl’s classic, Wonka condenses a three-course meal into a single piece of chewing gum, with each flavor bursting at different intervals. In a similar approach, the Melbourne researchers take organic materials and compress them into a pill. The flavors are gradually released, simulating the experience of a full meal.
These multi-flavor pills are still in development. As of now, there are no signs of anyone turning into a giant blueberry, which is certainly a positive outcome.
8. 3D-Printed Steak Made from Plastic Waste
Continuing with the 3D printing concept, there's a project that transforms plastic waste into edible food. The idea is for astronauts to gather plastic debris, shred it, and feed it into a bioreactor. The waste interacts with specially engineered bacteria, which consume the plastic and convert it into biomass.
The unconventional idea came from engineer Anja Contractor, whose company, Beehex, specializes in 3D food printing systems. Beehex is supported by NASA, the U.S. Army, and other organizations. In 2023, Contractor showcased the process using a shipping container. As he explained to reporters, "If you want to create steak from plastic, the entire mechanism on one side of this container will be able to produce steak—or chicken breasts—from plastic."
7. Veggie on the International Space Station
While NASA’s Vegetable Production System, known as Veggie, can only support the growth of six plants at a time, it won’t be sufficient to feed the entire crew of the International Space Station (ISS). However, Veggie gives scientists a valuable chance to explore gardening in microgravity. It also offers astronauts a small but fresh addition to their otherwise freeze-dried meals.
The Veggie system is roughly the size of a carry-on suitcase. Instead of traditional soil, plants grow in nutrient-rich pillows made of fertilizer and clay, with LED lights providing the necessary illumination. So far, astronauts have successfully cultivated various lettuce varieties, mustard, kale, and Chinese cabbage. There are hopes to grow other crops, like tomatoes and peppers. Additionally, berries, which are packed with antioxidants, could help protect astronauts from radiation exposure.
6. Multi-Story Vertical Farming
In the late 1990s, Columbia University researcher Dr. Dickson Despommier embarked on the concept of vertical farming. The idea mirrored a multi-story building, but each floor was dedicated to growing crops. By dividing the yield into distinct sections, farmers can manage the conditions tailored to each plant’s needs.
Growing crops on a space mission requires carefully engineered conditions, and the limited space available poses a challenge. This makes techniques like vertical farming a potential breakthrough for astronauts. But the benefits extend beyond space; scientists believe that vertical farming could also be a game-changer for Earth. It uses less water, fewer resources, and occupies significantly less land compared to traditional farming.
A single acre of vertically farmed crops can yield as much as four to six acres of soil-based farming. These farms are more sustainable, and they operate year-round. It seems that this innovative method, originally intended for space, may have practical applications right here on Earth, beyond the expectations of its creators.
5. Growing Cress in Moon Soil
In 2022, scientists made history by growing plants in soil sourced directly from the Moon. Researchers at the University of Florida successfully planted thale cress seeds in lunar soil and watched them sprout. They used samples collected from three Apollo missions in the late 1960s and early 1970s, alongside a simulant control for comparison.
Despite coming from various locations on the Moon, all the samples provided sufficient conditions for the cress to thrive. However, the cress grown in lunar soil was smaller and slower than the control group, showing signs of stress. Nevertheless, the Florida team is thrilled with the outcome, which could be crucial for long-term space travel. As Robert Ferl, one of the project’s contributors, said, 'Proving that plants can grow in lunar soil is a major milestone for establishing lunar colonies.'
4. Artificial Burgers Made of Fungi
Space agencies are eager to explore food solutions for long-term missions. In 2021, NASA and the Canadian Space Agency launched the Deep Space Food Challenge, inviting innovative scientists to devise new methods of producing food in space.
The second stage of the competition took place in Brooklyn in May 2023 and showcased a variety of groundbreaking ideas for space-based food. One standout came from Kernel Deltech, a spin-off of food company Eternal Bioworks, which presented fried cheese and burger bites. The twist? Both were made from Fusarium venenatum, a fungus also used in Quorn products.
The team developed a method for growing and harvesting fungi in microgravity with the help of compact bioreactors. The result is a gray powder packed with protein, which can then be transformed into snacks such as cheese and burger bites.
3. Aleph Farms’ 3D-Printed Beef
September 2019 marked a significant achievement in space food development, as scientists successfully grew artificial meat in space for the first time, using 3D-printed cow cells.
The technique was developed by Israeli food company Aleph Farms. To create their lab-grown beef, they first extracted cow cells and placed them in a nutrient-rich 'broth.' Kazakhstan’s Soyuz MS-15 mission then transported vials of this mixture to the International Space Station, where Russian cosmonauts used a magnetic printer to replicate the cells and form artificial 'meat.' After a week, the beef samples returned to Earth.
The experiment produced only a small amount of meat, and the flavor was far from remarkable. Still, Aleph Farms demonstrated that meat can be grown in the challenging environment of microgravity. This breakthrough holds significant promise for future applications.
While this technology could one day supply protein for astronauts on deep-space missions, it also offers a solution for feeding people on Earth. Cultured meat requires ten times less land and water than traditional livestock farming. With natural resources depleting, Aleph Farms' artificial steak could pave the way for more sustainable meat production.
2. Growing Mushrooms through Artificial Photosynthesis
Returning to the realm of fungi, we encounter Nolux. Staying true to its name (Nolux, meaning 'no light' in Latin), the researchers have developed a method for cultivating oyster mushrooms without sunlight. This process utilizes liquid hydrocarbon acetate, a substance that can be produced on space missions by converting CO2 and water.
Remarkably, the initial aim of the Nolux team wasn’t to revolutionize food production. Their original goal was to genetically modify algae to increase biofuel production. However, the high costs made this direction unfeasible. In the process, they laid the groundwork for Nolux. According to the team, using acetate in a 70-cubic-foot (2-cubic-meter) reactor could yield up to 18.7 pounds (8.5 kg) of food daily.
1. Solein: A Protein Powder Formed from Microbes
Kernel Deltech isn’t the only company pushing the boundaries of space food innovation (and it wouldn't be much of a challenge if they were). Solar Foods, a Finnish company, has created a microbe-based protein powder called Solein (and no, it’s not Soylent Green—that’s made from people).
Solein is produced from edible bacteria that thrive by metabolizing hydrogen gas. This gas is a by-product of life support systems when oxygen is extracted from water. Typically discarded, Solar Foods has found a way to harness it to cultivate Solein protein powder. This versatile powder, they claim, can be transformed into virtually any food an astronaut might desire. Recently, they have been showcasing their innovative process by crafting fortune cookies from Solein.
