Crops grown on Martian soil have been deemed safe to eat

By Lulu Chang Published April 2, 2021

A spacecraft above Mars. — Creative Commons

When we finally manage to make our way off of planet Earth and onto Mars, rest assured that we won’t have to sustain ourselves on dehydrated astronaut meals (like those not so enjoyed by Scott Kelly during his record-setting tenure in space). Instead, we’ll be able to grow crops in Martian soil. And we know this because we’ve already done it here on Earth. Dutch scientists have managed to grow crops, including four vegetables and cereals, in soil “similar to that on Mars,” and have deemed it safe to eat.

Sure, it’s not actually soil straight from the source, but it does contain many of the same elements as what might be found on the red planet. And not only were scientists able to grow crops, but they were able to grow them “abundantly.” Radishes, peas, rye, and tomatoes were all harvested in the course of the latest experiment, and contained “no dangerous levels” of heavy metals, according to the team from Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

Recommended Videos

“These remarkable results are very promising,” senior ecologist Wieger Wamelink noted of the results. “We can actually eat the radishes, peas, rye and tomatoes, and I am very curious what they will taste like.”

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Scientists have actually been trying to emulate agriculture on Mars since 2013, and over the last three years, have raised 10 different crops. And while those grown on Martian soil on Earth are safe to eat, it’s unclear if plants actually grown on Mars would be consumable — after all, it’s unclear as to whether or not these crops would absorb heavy metals like cadmium, copper, and lead.

“It’s important to test as many crops as possible, to make sure that settlers on Mars have access to a broad variety of different food sources,” said Wamelink.

And more tests will soon be carried out on six more crops, including potatoes, to determine their viability on Mars. Researchers say they will be turning to a crowdsourcing campaign for the funds needed to sustain their work, and if I were a betting woman, I’d bet that people would be more than happy to chip in to improve their Martian descendants’ future diets.

NASA has ambitious plans for a trip to Mars within the next decade or so, and of course, Elon Musk has also expressed interest in colonizing Mars. And if we want to enjoy our time on the red planet when we get there, we better have some delicious produce to eat.

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…

Space

Mars Curiosity rover snaps dreamy images of drifting Martian clouds

Mars

NASA's Perseverance rover may be grabbing all the headlines just now, but the space agency's other active rover, Curiosity, continues to explore the red planet after arriving there almost a decade ago.

Like Perseverance, Curiosity’s initial mission length was set at two years, but NASA later decided to extend it indefinitely. Since then, the rover has stayed busy, investigating various Martian mysteries, examining rocks, climbing slopes, and even snapping selfies.

Space

Photo shows Perseverance rover as a tiny dot on the desolate Martian surface

new perseverance image lets you zoom in to see amazing detail stitched panorama

As NASA’s Perseverance rover continues to undertake checks following its successful arrival on Mars last week, we can now see the first image of the car-sized robotic explorer taken from high above by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Captured by the orbiter's High Resolution Imaging Experiment (HiRISE) camera as it passed overhead at an altitude of around 180 miles, the rover appears as a tiny dot on the vast and desolate Martian surface.

Space

NASA’s InSight lander is going into hibernation for the Martian winter

This illustration shows NASA's InSight spacecraft with its instruments deployed on the Martian surface.

This illustration shows NASA's InSight spacecraft with its instruments deployed on the Martian surface. NASA/JPL-Caltech

If you're feeling an urge to curl up in bed and sleep until the cold months have passed and spring arrives, then you're not the only one. NASA's InSight lander on Mars will soon be powering down some of its instruments to slumber through the Martian winter before reawakening to continue its scientific investigations once the sun returns this summer.