Article from WeChat public account:Create (ID:xingshu100), Translation: Yu Bo, proofreading: Lily, Source: Popsic
, the header from: Oriental IC
Local time Monday, NASA (NASA)Director Jim Bridenstin was asked at the International Astronautical Congress: Human When will you be on Mars? In this regard, Bridenstin said: “If our budget is sufficient, I think it is expected to achieve this goal by 2035. Our goal is to land on the moon within five years and achieve sustainability in 2028. Development goals.” He then explained, “Sustainable development means people live and work long hours in another world.”
After boarding Mars, can we survive on Mars?
Scientists look for philanthropic creatures in the harshest environments of the planet to study how life lives on Mars. These unidentified microbes under the rocks were found in the coastal mountains of the Atacama Desert in Chile. In this arid barrenThe plateau also has salt crusts, which form the most Martian environment on Earth.
When humans finally set foot on dusty Mars, in the future space exploration, some “astronauts” were too small to be seen with the naked eye. But that doesn’t mean that the role they play is not important.
The mission of manned Mars requires shelter, breathable air, clothing, food, medicine, energy, garbage disposal and other services. Many of these needs can be met by living organisms.
“For thousands of years, we have been using biology as a technology to make clothes and build houses.” NASA (NASA)< /span>Astronomical biologist and synthetic biologist, Lynn Rothschild, , said: “On Mars, we will do the same, but in a different way. It makes people feel a little crazy when they think about it.”
Astronauts will not only rely on supplies from the Earth, they can also use microbes to make some supplies on the spot. Certain bacteria can take advantage of the limited resources on Mars to support simple ecosystems in the Martian base and even help small plants grow. They can make oxygen, break down waste, and make useful materials to help mine metals.
“We want to use what we can find on Mars. In this case, we need biology.” Dr. Cyprien Werso, a Ph.D. student at Rothschild University, Rothschild (Cyprien Verseux) says.
Mars life?
Rosschild and colleagues recently reported that they found a bacteria growing in the desert that is more resistant to Class C ultraviolet radiation than the famous one. Radiation cocci (above, also known as Conan bacteria). Find out why this bacterium has this ability to help scientists transform the genes of other bacteria, thereby enhancing their resistance to Mars radiation levels.
Mars is barely suitable for life. This means bringing microbes to Mars will worry scientists looking for Mars “indigenous people.” “If there is a life form there, but we pollute or completely kill them, it will be a huge tragedy,” Rothschild said.
If the astronauts later “discovered” the life of Mars, the Earth’s microbes may be confusing. “You may not be able to tell if it is life on Mars,” Versso said. “So we have to make sure that the microbes we use to sustain life don’t pollute Mars.”
Ensuring that humans explore space responsibly is the mission of the NASA Planetary Protection Office and the International Space Research Council.
The rules for Mars exploration missions are more stringent than those for the moon and asteroids. Those celestial bodies are unlikely to have life, but “Mars may have an environment suitable for life, so you must be very cautious when you go to Mars until we know there is no life there.” Senior Scientist, Planetary Protection Research, Center for Extraterrestrial Civilization Exploration Gret Rice (Margaret Race) said.
There are no specific regulations for manned missions on Mars. “There is no clear rule yet,” Rice said. “If someone wants to get the microbes on Mars now, this is not allowed.”
In any case, when astronauts land on Mars, they will carry microbes with them. “There are microbial flora in the human body. If humans are sent to Mars, we can’t destroy the microbes on the astronauts first,” Rice said.
One way to limit pollution is to take special protection on the most likely areas of life on Mars. Another method is to modify the DNA of human microbes to avoid “reading” and absorption by Martian life.
The international community is still considering the best option for sending humans and other lives to Mars. “No one stood up to stop this,” Rice said.“But we believe that when we enter the unknown, how do we ensure that we act responsibly?”
Can Earth life survive on Mars?
A simple genetic modification allows the microbe to prepare for landing on Mars. A team formed by Stanford University and Brown University has transformed the gene of Anabaena. The modified Anabaena can spray the sugar produced by itself, and other microorganisms can rely on these sugars to divide into food. (The microbes here refer to Bacillus subtilis found in the soil and in the human gut.) The “PowerCell” project will be put into trial in March 2017, when it will take off a satellite from the German Aerospace Center and researchers will observe it. How to adapt to low gravity environments.
Strictly speaking, we have sent life to Mars. Deutsche University of Technology celestial biologist Dirk Schulze-Makuch (Dirk Schulze-Makuch) said that the detector left the Earth orbit No matter how strict the sterilization measures taken before, it can’t be 100% effective. “The only question is whether they are likely to survive there.”
But Rothschild pointed out that those microbes are unlikely to take root on Mars and pollute the red planet. The University of Edinburgh celestial biologist Charles Coker (Charles Cockell) pointed out in 2002 that Mars’ living environment is extremely harsh.
Low gravity (presumably only 38% of Earth’s gravity) may not affect those tiny organisms. There is plentySunlight is used by microorganisms for photosynthesis. But Mars is very cold, with an average surface temperature of about minus 60 degrees. The air is also very thin, and the air pressure is only about 1% of the Earth’s sea level. Our planet has a magnetic field that protects us from radiation, but Mars does not. In addition, Mars is more arid than anywhere else on the planet.
“Most of the Martian surface is unlikely to have liquid water,” Coker said. “That is a dry, radiation-burned environment.”
A lot of microorganisms can go to sleep, and the earth’s microbes may be blown into the sheltered area or buried. If they are hidden under rocks, they can avoid the harshest temperatures and radiation. But they must absorb water from the air or find water from seasonal brine leaks.
In the cave on Mars (formed long ago by flowing magma), there may be water and thicker air. Another possible shelter is the Martian polar ice layer with liquid droplets.
“It is generally believed that these are unlikely to happen, and the Earth’s microbes are dead.” Markucci said, “However, we are not sure. Yes, the surface environment of Mars is very bad, but it should not underestimate the earth’s microbes. Vitality.
In this regard, Rothschild holds the same view. “The Earth’s microbes are unlikely to occupy the planet,” she said. “But I’m sure they can survive there, at least for a short time.”
Mars Zoo
Rosschild collaborated with undergraduate students at the iGEM team at Stanford Brown University to create a cement-like material using Bacillus bacillus. When mixed with urine, sand, and calcium chloride, Bacillus bacillus promotes the formation of calcium carbonate crystals that bind the sand together. Through this technology, you can use Mars floating soilTo make bricks.
A few billion years ago, a microbe called cyanobacteria paved the way for the proliferation of life on Earth. Long before the plant appeared, cyanobacteria released oxygen, a by-product of its photosynthesis.
In the eyes of Rothschild, the oxygen-rich Earth’s atmosphere is a perfect example of how powerful life is as a technology. And its potential to serve us in outer space is equally huge.
On Mars, astronauts can also use cyanobacteria to make useful materials and support other important microbes and plants. We have relied on microbes to provide food such as wine, cheese and yogurt as well as other important services.
“They help us make food and medicine and help us recycle it,” Coker said. “They can do the same on Mars, just like they are on Earth.”
Using microbes to make items on Mars can reduce the weight of the materials we carry from the Earth. Getting rid of the earth’s gravity is extremely expensive. Rothschild said that it would cost $10,000 to send a cola. This is still on the track, “You have not even reached Mars.”
The microbial weight is minimal and easier to transport to Mars. “Where, they will breed, take materials locally, use solar energy, like plants and algae on Earth,” Rothschild said. Microorganisms can take advantage of the water, minerals and atmospheric gases that are already present on Mars. “You can make everything from cyanobacteria, whether it’s plastic or shelter.”
Some microorganisms can be used to make food, oxygen and fuel, or to recycle waste to provide nutrients for plants and humans. Microorganisms can also be used to break down rocks and extract useful metals from them (On Earth, “bio-mining” has been used to mine gold and copper) . If mixed with the right ingredients, some microbes can stick the dust particles of Mars together to make the bricks needed to build a house.
Lettuce grown in culture. In a one-year isolation experiment, Versso used the nutrients extracted from cyanobacteria to grow lettuce. This experiment was designed to simulate a manned Mars mission. “I could have done this in a regular lab, but I want to see for myself what kind of environment people in these systems are in. I think this is a good idea,” Verso said. He also said that sitting in a comfortable office is not imaginable.
Microorganisms are especially useful if astronauts want to plant something with Martian soil. In the tank, plants must be protected from radiation and water and culture fluids or fertile soils should be provided to plants. “Microorganisms can convert the elements that are already on Mars into forms that plants can use,” Versso said.
Astronauts can grow plants to get food and oxygen, as well as soothe the body when the endless red scene is dull and dull.
“Growing plants is good for the mental health of astronauts, as is the case with the International Space Station,” Coker said. “This gives people something to look after.”
Animals take up a lot of space and resources, so astronauts may not bring them when performing early missions. But small animals such as silkworms, fish and shellfish may eventually be sent to Mars.
Create stronger microbes
The crust in the Natural Reserve National Reserve of Utah, USA, formed by microorganisms and soil. A few years ago, Coker and colleagues cultivated and planted cyanobacteria in the sands of the Tengger Desert in Inner Mongolia. After 15 days, artificial skin crusts were formed. A similar method can be used