Experimental and Modelling Investigation on the Use of In-Situ Available Resources to Produce Food and Supplements on Mars Using Microalgae

To enhance the prospects of long-term human missions to Mars, it is crucial to investigate the use of locally available resources to cultivate microalgae as a sustainable source of food for astronauts. This research investigates the growth of Chlorella vulgaris in a culture medium potentially obtainable on Mars using only in-situ available resources, i.e. regolith, atmospheric CO2 and metabolic wastes of crew. Experiments were performed in this view. The obtained results were then interpreted by a novel mathematical model. The nutritional characteristics of C. vulgaris biomass cultivated in such a “Martian” medium were also investigated.