MAGNOLIA, Ark. (KTAL/KMSS) – A space consortium voted to fund the joint venture between a chemistry and an agriculture professor to explore the feasibility of growing certain crops in a Mars soil simulation.
Dr. Gija Geme and Dr. Tim Schroeder of Southern Arkansas University were awarded a grant after the Arkansas Space Grant Consortium board voted to fund their project to explore the feasibility of growing soybeans, corn, lettuce, kale, and more. The project will measure heavy metal uptake by plants.
The soil on the planet of Mars is composed of mineral matter, small amounts of water, and no organic matter. The minerals are derived from weathered volcanic rock that has similarities to the weathered soils in Hawaii.
Martian soil is red, and sandy, and moves around the planet’s surface via global dust storms. It is assumed that the toxic concentrations in the soil will produce high concentrations of toxic metals in plants.
Dr. Adbel Bachri is the dean of the College of Science and Engineering at Southern Arkansas University. He said the research is relevant to NASA’s Exploration of Deep-Space Food Crops. The project at SAU could help answer the question of whether a Martian greenhouse is possible.
The Mars Exploration Program sees the planet as a possible destination needed for the survival of mankind.
SAU undergrads from both the agriculture and chemistry departments will simulate Mars’ toxic soil, grow crops, and test for the presence of heavy metals in the crops.
The grant will allow for the acquisition of an ICP instrument, which will also be of use to the local area for the testing of water and soil chemistry.
The SAU NRRC is housed in a 3,000-square-foot core facility that has been funded jointly by SAU and a grant from the Department of Commerce through the Arkansas Economic Development Administration.
Seven separate laboratories in the NRRC are equipped with analytical instrumentation that helps industries, public agencies, and private citizens in southwest Arkansas. NRRC is ADEQ-certified to test water and soil. They also provide waste-water testing for the cities of Magnolia and Waldo.
NRRC is a contractor for many chemical industries in Southwest Arkansas. They are known to provide chemistry consulting, research, and development through analytical methods.
