Moon dirt is full of tiny, glass fragments from micrometeorite impacts that got everywhere in the Apollo lunar landers and wore down the moonwalkers’ spacesuits.
Related News
Blood Moon: What makes the Moon turn Red during a total lunar eclipse?
Astronaut Raja Chari along with his crew returns to Earth after 177 days in Space
The real next step, they say, is to go and do it on the surface of the moon.
Related News
‘Marsquake’: 10 interesting things about the ‘Monster Quake’ on Mars
Scientists have detected what may be the largest ever monster quake on Mars using NASA’s InSight lander.
What exactly is ‘moon dust’?
Only 382 kilograms of moon rocks and soil were brought back by six Apollo crews, according to NASA. Some of the earliest moon dust was sprinkled on the plants under quarantine with the Apollo astronauts in Houston after returning from the moon.
Most of the lunar soil was locked away until recently, which left the University of Florida researchers with no option but to experiment with simulated soil made of volcanic ash on Earth earlier. However, NASA finally yielded 12 grams of moon dust to the researchers early last year. The long-awaited planting took place last May in a lab.
Related News
Petition in HC to open rooms in Taj Mahal: Controversy over Hindu idols and inscriptions hidden in the monument – Explained
Behold the first image of the black hole at the center of our galaxy
As per NASA, the timing for such an experiment was finally right. The space agency is now looking to put astronauts back on the moon in a few years.
Moon-agriculture
To develop a sustainable lunar agriculture system, the scientists say that a possible solution might be to use younger geologic spots on the moon, like lava flows, for digging up planting soil. The environment also could be tweaked, altering the nutrient mixture or adjusting the artificial lighting.
“The fact that anything grew means that we have a really good starting point, and now the question is how do we optimize and improve,” said Sharmila Bhattacharya, NASA’s program scientist for space biology. The ideal situation for future astronauts would be to tap into the endless supply of available local dirt for indoor planting as opposed to setting up an all-water (hydroponic) system, the open scientists.
The Florida scientists hope to recycle their lunar soil later this year, planting more thale cress before possibly moving on to other vegetation.
.