NASA PLANS TO GROW LUNAR MUSHROOMS TO BUILD HOMES ON THE MOON
The gravity well is an inescapable (pun intended) reality that all the world’s space programs have to face, NASA included. And the gravity well is, well, the Earth’s gravity. And getting out of it into orbit (and then beyond), requires the necessary escape velocity, which essentially means enough thrust power to get whatever the payload is up and out. And the payload? That’s the mass of the rocket, people, supplies and fuel. And the more mass, the more power you need. And that makes planning for moon bases challenging, because you have to take everything you need. But a recent NASA plan is to grow lunar mushrooms, and use those mushrooms to build homes. On the moon.
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LUNAR MUSHROOMS WILL PROVIDE MYCOMATERIAL AS A BUILDING FODDER IN MYCOTECTURE
That sounds kind of crazy. But only at first. Because there’s mycotecture, or the use of mycomaterial, to build structures. And yes, mycomaterial the material from fungi, like mushrooms. And all mushrooms need to grow are dust and water. And the moon has both, in the form of water crystals and regolith, or moon dust. So why haul building materials up the gravity well when all you need to do is bring…. Mushrooms? And it only gets more interesting and better. Mycomaterial is really, really strong. But it also apparently can be a great shield protecting people from radiation. And as the moon has no atmosphere, it’s constantly bombarded with radiation. And lunar mushrooms will fit the bill.
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WHO EVER WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THAT LUNAR MUSHROOMS COULD MAKE MOON COLONIZATION MORE POSSIBLE?
And while there are always a lot of (seemingly) great ideas at NASA, the vast majority of them don’t move forward or get funding. But NASA’s Mycotecture Off Planet project just got more funding. Which means that the next great leap in space exploration and colonization could launch from the idea and realization of lunar mushrooms. Because people living on the moon will also need to eat while living in mushroom-based structures and homes. And mushrooms could be a realizable food source, though we should all think of interesting ways to eat them, in great variety.
You can read more about NASA’s Mycotecture Off Planet Project here.
