Posted on 03/08/2017 4:06:46 PM PST by Gamecock
The International Potato Center (CIP) launched a series of experiments to discover if potatoes can grow under Mars atmospheric conditions and thereby prove they are also able to grow in extreme climates on Earth. This Phase Two effort of CIP's proof of concept experiment to grow potatoes in simulated Martian conditions began on February 14, 2016 when a tuber was planted in a specially constructed CubeSat contained environment built by engineers from University of Engineering and Technology (UTEC) in Lima based upon designs and advice provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in Ames Research Center (NASA ARC), California. Preliminary results are positive.
The Potatoes on Mars project was conceived by CIP to both understand how potatoes might grow in Mars conditions and also see how they survive in the extreme conditions similar to what parts of the world already suffering from climate change and weather shocks are already experiencing.
"Growing crops under Mars-like conditions is an important phase of this experiment," says Julio Valdivia-Silva, a research associate with the SETI Institute who has worked at NASA's Ames Research Center (NASA ARC) and now works at UTEC in Lima. "If the crops can tolerate the extreme conditions that we are exposing them to in our CubeSat, they have a good chance to grow on Mars. We will do several rounds of experiments to find out which potato varieties do best. "We want to know what the minimum conditions are that a potato needs to survive," he said.
The CubeSat houses a container holding soil and the tuber. Inside this hermetically sealed environment the CubeSat delivers nutrient rich water, controls the temperature for Mars day and night conditions and mimics Mars air pressure, oxygen and carbon dioxide levels. Sensors constantly monitor these conditions and live streaming cameras record the soil in anticipation of the potato sprouting.
According to CIP potato breeder Walter Amoros, one advantage potato great genetic capacity for adaptation to extreme environments. CIP has tapped into that capacity by breeding potato clones that tolerate conditions such as soil salinity and drought, in order to help smallholder farmers grow food in marginal areas that could grow harsher under climate change.
In 2016, CIP brought Mars analog soil from the Pampas de La Joya desert in Southern Peru to its experimental station in La Molina, Lima. There CIP was able to show proof that potatoes could grow in this dry, salty soil with some help from fertilized Earth soil for both nutrition and structure.
"We have been looking at the very dry soils found in the southern Peruvian desert. These are the most Mars-like soils found on Earth." Chris McKay of NASA ARC. "This [research] could have a direct technological benefit on Earth and a direct biological benefit on Earth," says Chris McKay of NASA ARC
From the initial experiment, CIP scientists concluded that future Mars missions that hope to grow potatoes will have to prepare soil with a loose structure and nutrients to allow the tubers to obtain enough air and water to allow it to tuberize.
"It was a pleasant surprise to see that potatoes we've bred to tolerate abiotic stress were able to produce tubers in this soil," Amoros said. He added that one of the best performing varieties was very salt-tolerant from the CIP breeding program for adaptation to subtropical lowlands with tolerance to abiotic stress that was also recently released as a variety in Bangladesh for cultivation in coastal areas with high soil salinity.
Amoros noted that whatever their implications for Mars missions, the experiments have already provided good news about potato's potential for helping people survive in extreme environments on Earth.
"The results indicate that our efforts to breed varieties with high potential for strengthening food security in areas that are affected, or will be affected by climate change, are working," he said.
The Potatoes on Mars project has been conducted by CIP with the advice of NASA ARC and construction of the CubeSat technology was done by student engineers and their advisors at UTEC. NASA and UTEC scientist Julio Valdivia-Silva collaborated extensively with teams of UTEC and CIP scientists on both phases of this experiment. He identified the soil from Pampas de La Joya desert and led the effort to construct the sophisticated CubeSat.
Send Sam Tyler, Gene Hunt and the rest from Manchester to work on that life on Mars thing.
Why would they build a cubesat to test these taters?
The movie was just a theoretical projection. Now we need to send Matt Damon and a sack of spuds to Mars to test the theory.
The movie is good, but the book is much better.
ML/NJ
I can pass on the potatoes, but if they make Mars bars there, might be of interest.
Which is found in abundance on Mars?
It would be fairly easy to send up some tundra-tolerant vegetation to see how it takes. Lots of carbon in the air for plants to inhale.
Where is the research money in that???
Paging Lewis Grizzard, paging Lewis Grizzard.
"KUDZU: Nothing grows faster than a kudzu vine. It has been known to cover entire homes in Georgia where the families are asleep for the night. They are then trapped inside and can’t get to a convenience store, so they starve. Those who try to eat their way out of kudzu quickly have their innards entangled in the vine because no matter how much you chew it, the blamed stuff just keeps on growing."
“Being Irish by heritage, I am delighted to hear this.”
This is part of a delightful series of videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZOPq-50YvQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmBY2sLzVUQ
Barbecue ones.
I see the potential for a new streamed site - YouTuber.
“The International Potato Center (CIP)”
First off, I’m a little surprised that potatoes have an international center. What do they do there? Spa treatments? Steam baths?
“Run! It’s blueunicorn6 and he’s got sour cream and chives!”
Secondly, shouldn’t the acronym for International Potato Center be IPC and not CIP?
What is wrong with these tater scientists? They don’t teach spelling at Spud U?
This article could have been written by Trofim Lysenko.
Many international acronyms are based on French phrases with the adjective coming after the noun eg FIFA = Federation Internationale Football de Association.
I’m guessing CIP = Centre Inernationale de Potato which is equally grandiose and silly. And French Fries are a big deal in potato circles, so....
Bring some salt and fryer oil and we’ll have Martian fries.
...
That was my first thought. Potatoes mean fries. The next big experiment is bacon.
Yeah but they had to take his sh1t, too.
Waiting for the launch of Spudnik.
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