[Hplusroadmap] Fwd: [Artemis] Cyanobacteria can process lunar soil

[Bryan Bishop]

See the email below. This may have some potential, especially if we can 
create a 'simulated lunar environment' for experimentalists at home. 
This environment would be a pressurized tank with little to no oxygen, 
and ground coverings that match the specifications of the moon.

http://heybryan.org/mediawiki/index.php/Moontank

- Bryan
----------  Forwarded Message  ----------

Subject: [Artemis] Cyanobacteria can process lunar soil
Date: Friday 14 March 2008
From: cfrjlr at aim.com
To: artemis-list at asi.org

Cyanobacteria can process lunar soil


Hardy Earth bacteria can grow in lunar soil
00:53 14 March 2008 
NewScientist.com news service 
David Shiga, Houston 
http://space.newscientist.com/article/dn13465-hardy-earth-bacteria-can-grow-in-lunar-soil.html?feedId=online-news_rss20

NASA is doing a lot of work on this currently, it could have some 
promise:

They have held some workshops at Ames, e.g. Jan 28-30, 2008:

Welcome to the Cyanobacteria In a Lunar Environment

http://event.arc.nasa.gov/cile/



Welcome to the Cyanobacteria In a Lunar Environment

The goal of this workshop, sponsored by the NASA Astrobiology Institute, 
is to bring together microbiologists, planetary scientists and experts 
in flight experiments and hardware to assess the value and feasibility 
of studying cyanobacteria in space environments. The initial emphasis 
will be on satellite and lunar platforms with an appreciation that 
these targets will also serve as steps towards Mars and beyond. 

Cyanobacteria are of great interest as model microorganisms to space 
programs because of their antiquity on earth, metabolic diversity, 
resilience to adverse conditions, ability to efficiently produce oxygen 
and hydrogen, and the existence of advanced capabilities for their 
genetic manipulation. Furthermore, cyanobacteria are often considered 
as having potential value for in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) and 
life support technologies. Critical review of both basic research and 
application potentials of cyanobacteria is warranted as soon as 
possible to determine the course and priority of research on this group 
of microbes within the NASA mission and science programs. 

Our workshop is aimed at generating a well-informed, systematic research 
program to address survival, acclimation, adaptation and utilization of 
cyanobacteria in space environments. Such an exploration program will 
also need to be planned within the context of current or near-future, 
experimental capabilities of various ground, satellite and lunar 
platforms. Thus, it is critical to bring together experts in diverse 
fields, so that realistic scenarios for using cyanobacteria, and 
possibly other microorganisms, for both the mission and research goals 
of NASA can be strategically planned. 

We expect that the end product of the workshop will be a white paper 
that will serve as a guiding document for NASA in addressing issues 
related to the potential for life to survive and thrive in the solar 
system and for the use of microorganisms for in-situ resource 
utilization in lunar exploration. We also plan to prepare at the 
workshop, a community-authored "position paper" on these issues that 
will be published in a peer-reviewed astrobiology journal so as to 
reach a wide audience. 

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________________________________________
Bryan Bishop
http://heybryan.org/