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Researchers plan to grow potatoes in Mars-like conditions simulated on Earth, in a major step towards building a controlled dome on the red planet capable of farming the invaluable crop. The experiment, led by the International Potato Centre (CIP) in Peru and NASA in US, demonstrates that potato crops can be grown in the most inhospitable environments to save millions of lives.
To prepare for the inevitably tricky endeavour, Peru-based research and development organization CIP is planning on conducting a dry run back home. The team will use soil from the Pampas de La Joya Desert in Peru, which is almost identical to that found on Mars. The researchers will grow the crop in a laboratory environment that mimics the atmospheric conditions of the Red Planet, where the atmosphere is close to 95 percent carbon dioxide.
Quite aside from being a great way to start preparing for the challenges of growing crops on a different planet, the project is also designed to have an impact back home, raising awareness of the impressive resilience of potatoes.
More than 842 million people are currently affected by famine around the globe. The team believes that potatoes’ ability to grow in even the most inhospitable of climates makes them the ideal contender to put a real dent in that number. Furthermore, they’re not just good at growing under difficult conditions, but also provide extremely high yields (two to four times that of a regular grain crop) and are extremely nutritious, being a good source of iron, zinc, vitamin C, and more.
“How better to learn about climate change than by growing crops on a planet that died two billion years ago?” asks CIP’s Joel Ranck. “We need people to understand that if we can grow potatoes in extreme conditions like those on Mars, we can save lives on Earth.”
Agencies/Canadajournal
