Plants That ‘Come Back From the Dead’ Could Be Key To Growing Crops on the Moon

A team of researchers from Israel and abroad set out to discover which plants could survive in space ahead of the 2025 Beresheet2 mission; 'the future of humanity will depend upon being able to reach the stars,' says the research professor.

Some unique plants like which can "come back from the dead" and can also survive extreme weather conditions....this might be the key to growing crops in space. These are known as resurrection plants, these are rare and they can survive without even water for months or even years on end, it depends on the species, and this might prove to be ideal candidates for space travel. 

This is precisely what a team of researchers led by the Israel’s Ben-Gurion University of the Negev is setting out to discover.

Prof. Simon Barak, of the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, is coordinating a team of plant biologists and imaging specialists ahead of the launch.“These [resurrection plants] are plants that you can dry down to almost being crisp and make them survive like that for years,” Barak said. “When you rewater them they come back to life; they expand and look like the original adult plant that they were.”

The plants that the scientists are currently examining as potential candidates to go to the moon must meet precise criteria due to the unique challenges brought about by space travel. Firstly, they have to survive the months-long journey to the moon and also be able to withstand extreme temperature changes, low gravity, and cosmic radiation.

The Aleph experiment will consist of seeds and plants also which will be kept inside the sealed chamber with the Earth's atmosphere in one of Beresheet2's landers. because, when the laner will turn its power on, there will be a light and a heater. And all things will be monitored using infrared cameras like plants and seeds.“Once we land, we power on and we irrigate we only have a 72-hour window for the experiment,” Barak explained. “

If it is successful then it will be the first experiment of its kind to test growing conditions on the moon. years ago China attempted to grow cotton seeds inside a controlled environment on the moon but all of them died due to the harsh conditions. “Human communities on the moon or Mars are going to require plants, not just for food but for supplying oxygen, for taking out carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, maybe for medicinal purposes and for general well-being,” he said.

Jill Farrant, a professor and research chair in plant molecular physiology at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, is one of the scientists taking part in the Aleph project. Farrant holds a research chair given by the South African Department of Science and Innovation through the National Research Foundation and is a leading expert on resurrection plants.

Myrothamnus flabellifolius foliage during the wet season, Hamerkop Kloof, Magaliesberg, South Africa. (Androstachys/Creative Commons)

According to him:

• though loosely defined, resurrection plants are an incredibly rare phenomenon.
• The specific type of plant she is looking into sending on the Beresheet2 mission is Myrothamnus flabellifolius (common name: resurrection bush), which only grows in southern Africa.
• “It’s the only woody resurrection plant on this planet and it’s ancient,” Farrant told The Media Line. “The reality is that they can lose 95% of their water and stay in their dry state for years. After a rain, 12 hours later they’re green and growing again.”
• “When they’re gearing down, they stop taking carbon and making food because that’s a very dangerous process,”  Farrant said They have ways of shutting down photosynthesis and they reshuffle their energy.

• “My theory is as a proof of concept: If we can get something there that can grow sporadically when there’s enough water it will survive until we know how to make enough water on that planet,” she added.

• Another purpose of the project is to encourage the wider public to participate. To this end, parallel science experiments will be carried out by amateurs (for example, high school students) and professionals to compare growth to that in lunar conditions.

  “The Earth is finite, our resources on Earth are finite and so the future of humanity will depend upon being able to reach the stars,” Barak said.