Space exploration will take us farther into the cosmos than ever before-so NASA is upgrading food production so astronauts can consume nutritiously tasty meals on long-term space missions.
The Deep Space Food Challenge
With the help of the Canadian Space Agency, NASA is seeking public participation in the research and development of innovative and sustainable food production technologies or systems that require minimum resources and produce as little waste as possible.
Known as the Deep Space Food Challenge, the space agency challenges teams to set forth food production prototypes using technologies to provide tangible nutritional goods. In other words: food.
As food ages, it loses its nutritional value. So if astronauts are being sent on a multiyear mission to Mars, bringing along pre-packaged food won't suffice to meet all their dietary needs.
"Feeding astronauts over long periods within the constraints of space travel will require innovative solutions," said Jim Reuter, associate administrator for NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate at the agency's headquarters in Washington.
But this problem does not solely exist in space because food insecurity is a widespread problem on Earth and particularly prevalent in both urban and rural areas.
Through initiatives such as the Deep Space Food Challenge, compact and innovative advanced food systems could be developed to meet our food production needs at home and in the community, providing new solutions for food insecurity.
That being said, NASA acknowledges that the Deep Space Food Challenge is not just a solution for astronauts accessing healthy food, but to people on Earth too.
Reuter also added, "Pushing the boundaries of food technology will keep future explorers healthy and could even help feed people here at home."
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The Deep Space Competition
As part of the 1st Phase of NASA's Deep Space Competition in October 2021, 18 teams won a total of $450,000 for their innovative food production technology that produces safe, palatable, high-quality, and nutritious food.
Meanwhile, the Canadian Space Agency awarded CAD 30,000 ($23,847) to 10 winning teams, and the Methuselah Foundation sponsored two $25,000 grants for outstanding innovation to international teams.
During the 1st phase of the Deep Space Food Challenge, several teams proposed technologies that make ready-to-eat food products, and some were bread and dehydrated powders.
In addition to these technologies, teams also produced cultivated plants, fungi, or engineered foods like cultured meat cells. Deep space astronauts can produce foods themselves in this way.
Moreover, teams who participated in Phase 1 are eligible for Phase 2 of the Deep Space Food Challenge.
But NASA is currently inviting new teams to participate after providing the required registration information by Feb. 28.
NASA will award up to $1 million in prize money to participants from the United States
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Written by Thea Felicity
