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A new roadmap for plant science and technology breakthroughs needed to make long-term human life on the Moon and later Mars possible has been developed by a global consortium of scientists, including experts from the University of Adelaide.聽

In 2027, humans are set to return to the Moon for the first time in 55 years. While astronauts on NASA鈥檚 Artemis III mission may spend less than 10 days on the lunar surface, scientists around the world are already preparing the next steps: how to live, grow food, and thrive beyond Earth.聽

The experts are part of a global consortium of more than 40 scientists from 11 countries and seven space agencies. Their article 聽was published in the journal, New Phytologist. It presents a shared global vision for using plants to sustain life in space and to advance sustainable agriculture on Earth.聽

Their work introduces a new 鈥淏ioregenerative Life Support System (BLSS) Readiness Level鈥� framework, extending NASA鈥檚 crop evaluation scale to assess how effectively plants can recycle air, water, and nutrients in space habitats, to ensure they not only provide nutrition but also other critical life support functions to support sustainable human deep space exploration.聽

Professor Matthew Gilliham, Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space at the University of Adelaide, and co-author of the study, said: 鈥淭his work shows how discoveries made for space can help us build a greener, more sustainable future on Earth.聽

鈥淭he innovations that will keep astronauts alive on the Moon, such as closed-loop farming, recycling, and resource efficiency, are the same technologies that will transform how we grow food and medicines on demand anywhere on Earth, from inner cities to remote regions, at any time of year.鈥澛�

The ARC Centre of Excellence in鈥疨lants for Space鈥痠s an international research consortium building novel solutions for long-term space habitation.聽

Dr Elison Blancaflor, Program Scientist for NASA鈥檚 Biological and Physical Sciences Division, said, 鈥淧lants are our life support system on Earth. They provide food, oxygen, water purification, and even psychological comfort. Without plants, life support will be a whole lot more challenging as we explore Moon, Mars and beyond, long-term.鈥澛�

The paper further highlights:聽

• Recent progress in crop sciences for space, and key priorities for future research聽

• The promise of synthetic biology and precision agriculture to design crops for space and climate-resilient farming on Earth聽

• The psychological and sensory benefits of growing and eating fresh produce in space聽

• The upcoming LEAF (Lunar Effects on Agricultural Flora) experiment, which will grow and return the first plants from the Moon with NASA鈥檚 Artemis III mission聽

• The need for deep and co-ordinated international collaboration to develop self-sustaining space farms for lunar and Martian missions, in the post-ISS (International Space station) era 鈥� which is due to be decommissioned around 2030.聽聽

鈥淏y learning to grow plants in space, we鈥檙e also improving the way we grow food on our own planet,鈥� said NASA鈥檚 Dr Luke Fountain, lead author of the article.聽聽

鈥淭he technologies we develop for the Moon and Mars will help tackle global challenges in food, energy, and sustainability.鈥澛�

The research builds on discussions from the International Space Life Sciences Working Group (ISLSWG) Plants for Space Exploration workshop, held during the European Low Gravity Research Association (ELGRA) conference in Liverpool, UK, in 2024.聽聽

Dr Ra煤l Herranz, a host from the ELGRA Management committee and ESA Life Science Working group delegate, highlighted 鈥渢he importance of international partnerships to achieve the global goal of support humanity exploration of space with a multiagency science-driven approach鈥�.聽