Advanced nutrient root-feeding system for conveyor-type cylindrical plant growth facilities for microgravity.

A compact and reliable automatic method for plant nutrition supply is needed to monitor and control space-based plant production systems. The authors of this study have designed a nutrient root-feeding system that minimizes and regulates nutrient and water supply without loss of crop yields in a space greenhouse. The system involves an ion-exchange fibrous artificial soil (AS) BIONA-V3(TM) as the root-inhabited medium; a pack with slow-release fertilizer as the main source of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium; and a cartridge with granular mineral-rich ionite (GMRI) as a source of calcium, magnesium, sulfur, and iron.

[Promising technique of mineral supply organization for plants in the condition of microgravity].

The proposed system of automated nutrient solution preparation for plant cultivation in microgravity consists of an ion-exchange fabric artificial soil (AS) as a root-inhabited medium, a pack with slow release fertilizer as the main source of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium and a cartridge with a granular mineral-rich ionite as a source of calcium, magnesium, sulphur and iron. Experiments proved that fabric AS BIONA-V3 is capable to stabilize pH of the substrate solution within the range of 6.0 to 6.

[Development of a minerals supply system for plants in a conveyor-type space greenhouse].

The paper presents ideas of optimizing the mineral nutrition system for salad crops in a space greenhouse. Experiments showed that to use mineral-saturated fiber ionite BIONA-V3 as an artificial soil will require to upmass a lot of expandable materials because of low specific content of nutrients. An additionally mineralized fiber soil makes possible to reduce mass of ionite in 5.

[Results of salad machine experiment within the MARS-500 project].

The salad machine experiment was aimed to fulfill performance testing of a prototype of space conveyor-type cylindrical greenhouse PHYTOCYCLE-SL, to study growth and development of plants, and to evaluate microbial contamination of equipment in the closed manned environment. Crops of leaf cabbage Brassica chinensis L., cultivar Vesnianka were raised in the time interval between MARS-500 days 417 and 515.

[Prototype of space vitamin greenhouse "Phytoconveyor"].

Installation of a greens production system on the International space station will mean a leap toward biological regeneration of food in long-duration space mission. Today, priority is given to green cultures as supplements of space rations and a psychological support to crews in exploration missions to Mars, and also as least resource-intensive. Cylindrical salad greenhouse "Phytoconveyor" designed at the Institute for Biomedical Problems is highly productive, energy-efficient, and requires minimum of crew time for.

[Greenhouse with a convex spherical planting surface as a prototype of space greenhouse and an instrument for studying the plant gravitropism].

IBMP has developed a technology and unit for cultivating self-opening crops on a convex planting surface illuminated by light-emitting diodes mounted on an external concentric panel ("Hemisphere"). The unit has a structure of two-member clinostat with semispherical plant growth chamber with a 600-mm diameter and a speed of from 1 to 10 revo about each axis; water potential in the root supply system is maintained at 1.0 +/- 0.

Developing a vitamin greenhouse for the life support system of the International Space Station and for future interplanetary missions.

In order to evaluate the effects of gravity on growing plants, we conducted ground based long-term experiments with dwarf wheat, cultivar Apogee and Chinese cabbage, cultivar Khibinskaya. The test crops had been grown in overhead position with HPS lamp below root module so gravity and light intensity gradients had been in opposite direction. Plants of the control crop grew in normal position under the same lamp.

[Differences in growth and ontogenetic development of plants grown in the Earth gravitational field in the natural and inverse orientation].

Wheat plants Triticum aestivum L., Apogee cultivar, were grown in the natural and inverse orientation of the Earth gravitational field. Special vegetation containers with double bottom were used for the cultivation.

Development of a root feeding system based on a fiber ion-exchange substrate for space plant growth chamber "Vitacycle".

Selecting a plant root nutrient delivery system is one of the key aspects of designing root modules for space plant growth chambers. This article examines a number of the nutrient delivery systems and shows the most suitable technique for providing nutrients to roots in microgravity, which to date are ion-exchange artificial soils. In addition, this article characterizes the ion composition and hydrophysical parameters of a new Russian artificial ion charged fiber substrate, BIONA-V3.

[The problem of developing a lettuce greenhouse for the International space station and future interplanetary missions].

In order to evaluate the effects of gravity on growing plants, we conducted ground-based long-term experiments with dwarf wheat (cultivar "Apogee USU") and Chinese cabbage (cultivar "Khibinskaja"). The test crop had been grown in overhead position with HPS lamp below the root module so that gravity and light gradients were in opposite direction. Plants of the control crop grew in normal position under the same lamp.

Project of conveyer-type space greenhouse for cosmonauts' supply with vitamin greenery.

Design and advantages of conveyer-type growth chamber PHYTOCYCLE with a cylindrical crop surface are featured. Based on the results of testing, an experimental prototype of conveyer-type vegetable greenhouse VITACYCLE for space vehicles is being developed at the SSC-IBMP in conjunction with a number of institutions of the Russian space industry to provide space crews with fresh greenery. Rated daily production of the greenhouse is 150 g of eatable biomass with power consumption of 1 kW.

[Influence of root module design on growth and development of plants].

Wheat crop was grown in various root modules (RM) in which nutritional solution was injected through porous membrane (2-6 microns). Seeds were laid on the surface of membrane or in pearlite covering the membrane. Root modules 1 and 3 contained ceramic porous tubes 10 mm and 22 mm in diameter, respectively.

[Relationship of some environmental factors to disorders in wheat ontogenesis as applied to space greenhouse].

In ground-based experiments reproducing conditions in experiments in the Mir greenhouse Svet super dwarf wheat was raised at water potential (WP) in root modules with pearlite within the range from -0.5 kPa to -3.0 kPa.

[Experimental study of the root supply system with periodic water return designed for space greenhouses].

To improve reliability of plant's moistening and aeration control in microgravity, an original root supply system with a periodic return water flow has been designed and tested in laboratory. For 30 days crops of Pekinese cabbage (Brassica pekinesis (Lour Rupr), Khibini sort) were raised in the test bench which allowed adjustment of water potential in the root zone within a preset range. A three-step water potential control algorithm included water injection with a pump-dispenser, a pause, and water sucking back to a desired value of water potential.

[The influence of the water potential in the root-habitable area on the efficiency of the higher-order plants].

In a set of 8 experiments, in leaf mustard Brassica junceae L. (cult. Volnushka) and in soft wheat Triticum aestivum L.

[Characteristics of several artificial substitutes of soil for space flight greenhouses].

The analysis of the study associated with cultivating the leaf cabbage, small radish in the Russian-Bulgarian greenhouse "Svet" aboard Mir orbital space station in 1990 has demonstrated that under microgravity conditions the zeolite substrate "Balkanin" with particles dimensions of 1-3 mm placed in the root modules of the greenhouse "Svet" did not ensure the sufficient transfer of the water from moisture-saturated wicks to the periphery of the vegetation vessels what is attributable to the peculiarities of hydrophysical characteristics of the substrate used. There presented the results of experimental research on the hydrophysical and agrochemical characteristics of the ion-exchange substrates of two other types--"Biona 312" and "Biona V" prepared on the basis of the artificial ion-exchange resins: cationite--CU-2 and anionite EDE-10P. For these substrates there found the estimates of humidity correlating with the loss of gassy pores as well as there measured the specific weight of the solid phase and the volumetric weight.