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Scientists Harvest First Vegetables in Antarctic Greenhouse (apnews.com)

Posted by msmash on from the moving-forward dept.

Scientists in Antarctica have harvested their first crop of vegetables grown without earth, daylight or pesticides as part of a project designed to help astronauts cultivate fresh food on other planets. From a report: Researchers at Germany's Neumayer Station III say they've picked 3.6 kilograms (8 pounds) of salad greens, 18 cucumbers and 70 radishes grown inside a high-tech greenhouse as temperatures outside dropped below -20 degrees Celsius (-4 Fahrenheit). The German Aerospace Center DLR, which coordinates the project, said Thursday that by May scientists hope to harvest 4-5 kilograms of fruit and vegetables a week.

46 of 83 comments (clear)

  1. Did they grow iceberg lettuce? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Fucking penguins got in and destroyed all my beans....

  2. Has been done before. by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 5, Funny

    I saw a documentary that showed an astronaut growing potatoes in his own crap. So it looks like it is has been done before. Why repeat it on earth all over again?

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    1. Re:Has been done before. by RFjunkie · · Score: 1

      Sure it is. Someplace. Some... verse. Heh.

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    2. Re:Has been done before. by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 4, Insightful
      What? Someone wrote a science fiction story not involving light sabers, extra sensory perception, psychic communications, hyperspace, teleporter, talking computers, sentient robots, space shifting aliens, huge red/orange hydrocarbon explosions in deep space, energy cannons with recoil, space craft doing a banking turns through vacuum ...

      And Hollywood plunked down money and actually made a movie of that thing! You couldda knocked me down with a feather buddy! Who would have thunk it is possible!! No wonder I mistook it for a documentary.

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    3. Re: Has been done before. by fezzzz · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Antartcica is one of the least disturbed places on earth with an immense magnifying glass of the impact we humans have on the continent. I overwintered in 2006 and 2007 on SANAE base in teams 45 and 46. Everything that goes in, must come back and the risks of contamination, even though remote, prohibited any growing of anything. No chicken bones were part of the food due to the risk of chicken flu for the bird colonies. Regardless of the laws, in a team of 9 members, with no access to the outside world, the team actually decides on the laws for the year. We may or may not have grown something to smoke, made a braai in the kitchen or used the fire extinguishers to fizz our drinks.

    4. Re:Has been done before. by BlueStrat · · Score: 1

      Well, technically energy cannons would have recoil, just not nearly as much as the movies show. If the energy was delivered in laser form for example, the light pressure would cause a small but measurable recoil in the opposite direction [aps.org].

      Checkmate atheists.

      Indeed, the proof is undeniable.

      Light has mass and exhibits Newtonian properties therefor God is real because He is Light.

      [mic-drop]

      Strat

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    5. Re: Has been done before. by fezzzz · · Score: 1

      Taxed Rands to be more exact, but your point is valid. Most scientific research are government sponsered due to the perceived low odds of returns. We mostly focused on maintaining equipment, studying ionospheric research. Riometers (wide band radio receivers in 200Mhz range) directional and wide band, magnetometers, radar, aurora cameras. My most important project was maintaining ion detectors to measure cosmic rays. The count is higher with a more perpendicular magnetic fields. Besides daily checks and side projects, there's much free time to fratenize if all equipment runs as designed. In my first year, our main water pipe burst on about 100 places due to low temperature water, freezing. We spent a few weeks carrying 6m, 100mm pipes, removing insulation, welding gaps closed, adding new heating tape and reinstalling the pipes.

  3. Rocket Science by bigwheel · · Score: 1

    Grow lights have been around for a while.

    We used to grow bean sprouts while on long canoe trips. Sprouts are easy to grow, don't take up much space, taste good, and fairly nutritious.

    1. Re:Rocket Science by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Grow lights have been around for a while.

      Yeah, but really ...

      by May scientists hope to harvest 4-5 kilograms of fruit and vegetables a week

      Could you do that?

      For all y'all still using cubits and hogsheads, that's around 10 pounds of vegetables a week ... and I'd bet the astronauts would be awfully happy to have that much fresh produce every week.

      It's easy to be dismissive until you stop to realize the scale and everything else they're talking about here.

    2. Re:Rocket Science by ColdWetDog · · Score: 2

      Not only that, but hydroponically grown vegetables in Antartica have been grown for quite a while as well:

      http://www.spaceref.com/news/v...

      Date on the article: 2004

      Come on Slashdot. I know this isn't a breaking news site but ....

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    3. Re:Rocket Science by bigwheel · · Score: 5, Interesting

      " by May scientists hope to harvest 4-5 kilograms of fruit and vegetables a week

      Could you do that?"

      Yes. I grew up on a small farm that produced several truckloads of vegetables every week. And yes, we started them under grow lights and greenhouses while there was snow on the ground. My father did this with only an 8th grade education.

      Given enough space, heat, and lighting, 10 pounds of vegetables isn't very much. Looking at TFA, the scientist didn't look like he was working in a crammed environment, compared to any other greenhouse. Forgive me for being dismissive, but it's been done before.

    4. Re:Rocket Science by bigwheel · · Score: 2

      "How much space do you need?"

      Look at the picture in TFA. Take the amount of space in the photo, and divide that by the number of plants you see. If you do this carefully, you will notice that the room is quite spacious, compared to most greenhouses.

      If TFA showed how the scientist created technology that can grow lots of vegetables in a tiny area, it might be impressive. But based on the article and photo provided, the scientist achieved about as much as a kid in a 4-H project.

    5. Re:Rocket Science by DontBeAMoran · · Score: 2

      How much space do you need?

      It doesn't really matter, since space is infinite.

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    6. Re:Rocket Science by Firethorn · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I think that what has happened here is that a fluff piece was written about a greenhouse that is performing actual science, but the science part was lost as it went over the head of the reporter.

      It looks like they're testing various aeroponic setups, and might even be testing different strains of various plants.

      Plus, while we know how to do it, they may be going for more exact numbers. How many days and hours? How much artificial light? What temperature? How much water? Etc...

      The fact that it gives the scientists and workers down there fresh produce is a bonus.

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  4. Salad Greens? by jellomizer · · Score: 2

    I would expect they would try to grow more calorie per kilogram vegetables then Salad Greens. Sure in industrialized areas, Salad Greens are nice for fillers, because we have no food shortages, so we like the crunch and the fact it will fill us up without extra caloric intake. But in Antarctica, I would put more effort into growing foods that will better sustain the people there, because getting food delivered is expensive and hazardous.

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    1. Re:Salad Greens? by tomhath · · Score: 1

      Makes you wonder how many calories of food they got per calorie used to generate the electricty. Neumayer-Station III Power generation: Three 75 kW Diesel generators — 150 kW maximum, 105 kW average output. Good luck using diesel generators on Mars.

    2. Re:Salad Greens? by Comboman · · Score: 1

      If I had a high-tech indoor grow-op on a lawless continent thousands of miles from the nearest police, I would definitely not use it for salad greens.

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    3. Re:Salad Greens? by Headw1nd · · Score: 5, Informative

      Calories are usually not the issue overall, as high-caloric foods tend to be easy to transport and store. The issue is more nutrient-rich foods and the bulk items needed for healthy digestion.

    4. Re:Salad Greens? by DontBeAMoran · · Score: 1

      Hell yeah!

      You're talking about green peppers, right?

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  5. Impress me? by RFjunkie · · Score: 1

    When they're regularly growin' maters and taters, I'm in. Heh.

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  6. Where? What? by Bearhouse · · Score: 4, Informative

    Since the linked-to AP article is mostly just a picture, with nothing on the tech., here you go:

    https://phys.org/news/2018-04-...

    http://www.dlr.de/dlr/en/deskt...

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

    Pretty cool, but maybe not space & cost effective on a spaceship.

    1. Re:Where? What? by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 1

      Radish greens are edible. I wonder if they ate them.

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    2. Re:Where? What? by Headw1nd · · Score: 2

      I think part of what they're working on is optimizing yield against space and weight of materials, since these are also concerns in Antarctica. I also imagine fresh vegetables would be a premium item down there, especially in winter.

    3. Re:Where? What? by agmsmith · · Score: 1

      Thanks for the links. I was wondering what their power source is, and the Wikipedia article has the answer. Apparently they're turning diesel fuel and a bit of wind into plant growth.

  7. Wow... by Type44Q · · Score: 1

    Plants grown indoors... under artificial lighting... here on Earth?!

    Color me impressed.

    1. Re:Wow... by jrumney · · Score: 1

      The "without pesticides" bit sounds especially challenging in Antarctica or some distant planet similarly hostile towards terrestrial life.

  8. Marketing opportunity by ChrisMaple · · Score: 1

    They ought to be able to get a huge price premium for rare Antarctic produce.

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  9. Re:How did they pick the vegetables? by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 1

    They're getting paid a whole lot, so they'll do just about anything.

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  10. Food from air! by Dread_ed · · Score: 1

    The incredibly sparse linked story was devoid of any relevant details. Apparently the plants take root in the air and spontaneously grow edible plant matter from a combination of nothing and nothing.

    Also, why the effing hell would pesticides even need to be mentioned. In a sterile environment designed to replicate a space station or a habitable fabrication on another planet where the FUCKING FUCKITY FUCK FUCK would the insects come from?!?!? It's like the person who wrote this article was an intern at Monsanto and thinks that pesticides are a required nutrient or something.

    Worst article ever. No revealing information on innovation, methods, or novelty. We are somehow stupider for having read it. I award you no points and may god have mercy on your soul.

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    1. Re:Food from air! by Waffle+Iron · · Score: 4, Informative

      The term "pesticides" also includes herbicides and fungicides.

      If your life depends on successfully growing a monoculture over several years in a sealed tin can, you might need to at least consider having some fungicides on hand. Not to mention, some mites are almost microscopic. Without any natural predators, one pair slipping through might also ruin your day.

    2. Re:Food from air! by Dread_ed · · Score: 1

      Thank you Waffle Iron! You provided more novel information than the linked "news" article and you spurred me to learn something new today. Oddly, I had never rigorously defined "pesticide." When you stated it included herbicides and fungicides it instantly made sense, but in a surprising way that let me know I was missing something. So I looked it up. Surprise and joy ensued, again thank you! Repellents are included, as are microbial agents. I had no idea I was washing my hands with pesticide, haha!

      From the Wikipedia:
      The term pesticide includes all of the following: herbicide, insecticides (which may include insect growth regulators, termiticides, etc.) nematicide, molluscicide, piscicide, avicide, rodenticide, bactericide, insect repellent, animal repellent, antimicrobial, fungicide, disinfectant (antimicrobial), and sanitizer.

      I assume when the article says the plants grow without earth there is some kind of nutrient resupply, possibly from human waste. I'm not sure because the FUCKING ARTICLE HAS NO FUCKING DETAILS...ahem, sorry for that outburst. Creating a sustainable, sealed, food producing system without any sanitization, disinfectants, or fungicide is really amazing.

      If only there were some kind of news article we could read about it...

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    3. Re:Food from air! by dargaud · · Score: 1

      Also, why the effing hell would pesticides even need to be mentioned

      Haven't RTFA, but I've grown stuff in Antarctica, and in McMurdo they've been growing lots of stuff for a long time and they regularly have problems with the Tobacco mosaic virus as it can be carried by people for a long time.

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  11. Re:OMG Global Warming! by Train0987 · · Score: 2

    Thank you comrade! Your secret mission to make Democrats look even dumber has been a huge success!

  12. 5kg tomato by thinkwaitfast · · Score: 1

    is 900 kcalories

  13. Re:Excellent News by Headw1nd · · Score: 1

    This is the real story.

  14. Space Drugs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Sweet, just a few years away from some dank space weed.

  15. Antarctic? by DontBeAMoran · · Score: 3, Funny

    Researchers at Germany's Neumayer Station III say they've picked 3.6 kilograms (8 pounds) of salad greens, 18 cucumbers and 70 radishes grown inside a high-tech greenhouse as temperatures outside dropped below -20 degrees celsius.

    Only -20C? They should try their experiment in Canada, where we have real winters, eh?

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    1. Re:Antarctic? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Only -20C?

      I guess the summer is staring to turn into autumn down there.

  16. Delicious by nospam007 · · Score: 1

    I bet the veggies taste better than the ones from all those Arctic greenhouses in Alaska.
    After all this is the deep South.

  17. Sprouts by sjbe · · Score: 1

    We used to grow bean sprouts while on long canoe trips. Sprouts are easy to grow, don't take up much space, taste good, and fairly nutritious.

    I'm with you except for the "taste good" part. They're palatable but never once in my life have I ever craved a sprout or thought that they had a great taste. Nice bit of crunch and can add a little fresh but they have less taste than celery and are extremely bland.

    1. Re:Sprouts by DontBeAMoran · · Score: 1

      they have less taste than celery and are extremely bland

      Celery is too spicy for me, I prefer to eat ice cubes.

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  18. Pesto by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 1

    Without pestacides is a cloyingly idiotic stance. If any insects get free on an alien planet, fully exterminsting them as quickly as possible is the name of the game.

    There is no environmentalist issue here. They need to bring pestacides (i.e. budget for it in transition) just in case. Maybe not much, and something that can be powderized and is safe in a contained space, but they need it.

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    1. Re:Pesto by iggymanz · · Score: 1

      You are the one making an idiotic stance. We are not going to "an alien planet" with our space program. We are only going to have space stations and possibly humans on utterly barren worlds and asteroids in our solar system. There are no known habitable worlds in the universe but Earth thus far. The Kepler planets are merely candidates that could prove uninhabitable for a myriad of reasons, and we won't reach those in the next two centuries.

  19. Perhaps they should contract marijuana growers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Marijuana dgrowers perfected growing things indoors long ago. Maybe they should hire some? Really though I don't see what's so special about this. We already know you can grow plants indoors. They mention the temperature outside as if that makes a difference growing indoors. I would expect a research station in Antarctica to be able to withstand the weather. And you don't need to use pesticides when growing in a sterile environment. Why is this news?

  20. Our Antarctic veggies will rule the markets! by ffkom · · Score: 1

    Now we only need to burn some more coal to speed up climate change, and soon those dried-up, sun-burnt deserts will crave for our Antarctic veggies, sold at premium prices!

  21. The South Pole Station has a hydroponic greenhouse by NixieBunny · · Score: 1

    The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station has a nice greenhouse in which fresh food has been grown for ten years or so. I was there a few months back, and ate some of their greens. Yummy! This experiment must be a bit more exotic, otherwise it wouldn't be newsworthy.

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