University of Guelph students are in the race to grow food in space | 24CA News

Growing meals in house is a posh problem, however college students on the University of Guelph have a fairly good concept of tips on how to go about it.

The staff, Canada GOOSE — which stands for Growth Options for Outer Space Environments — is amongst 5 groups throughout Canada competing in the multi-year competitors from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) often known as the Deep Space Food Challenge. 

The staff is at the moment on the second section of the competitors and hosted representatives from CSA on Thursday to showcase their concept.

The groups have been instructed to develop new applied sciences that may be capable to produce meals in house, however that may be used for manufacturing right here on Earth.

The Canada GOOSE staff makes use of a hydroponic-like, high-density system to supply a number of sorts of fruits, greens and mushrooms.

“We have a multi-tier system growing a variety of plants, but the whole environment is being controlled so, air circulation, temperature, CO2 level, also light levels with the LEDs. So basically giving the best conditions for the plants to grow,” defined Serge Levesque, a second-year PhD scholar.

Rosemary Brockett, a second yr masters scholar, defined the crops have been developed and grown to supply as little waste as potential. 

“We can’t have any kind of waste in space or in remote areas so we’re growing them all using fabric wicks,” she mentioned.

“The fabric pulls up the water to the plants and then we have 3D-printed holders that support the plants and the fabric.”

Brockett mentioned they will develop root greens like turnips and carrots; dwarf tomatoes and peppers; leafy greens like cabbage, lettuce and bok choy; smaller trays have herbs, radish microgreens and sprouts.

Levesque mentioned additionally they develop mushrooms as a result of they play a key function within the unit’s ecosystem.

“Plants photosynthesize and release oxygen and mushrooms need oxygen to release CO2, so it allows us to use CO2 more efficiently,” he mentioned, including the inedible elements of different greens can be utilized to assist develop the mushrooms; a strategy to re-use and get rid of waste.

Tech might help feed, educate Earthlings

The Canadian grand prize will not be introduced till Spring 2024, however regardless of the outcomes, the scholars see purposes for his or her know-how nearer to dwelling.

First-year PhD scholar Ajwal Dsouza says it could possibly be a helpful training instrument for youth, for instance.

“Imagine putting this system up in a school or a university and educate people about the technological advancements happening but also [encourage] younger generations to study this,” and may also think about purposes in addressing meals insecurity in different extra distant elements of the world, like Canada’s northern communities.

“A system like this can be economically feasible. You can use it in remote areas where there is food insecurity using limited resources,” he mentioned.

“We can grow food in places where the weather is not good, like Canada’s north or in a desert, where there’s limited resources. This can help people grow food in tough conditions,” mentioned Dsouza.

The Canada GOOSE staff will discover out in the event that they enter the third stage of the competitors in March.