NASA funds project to turn human waste into food

The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has decided to spend $200,000 per year on an ambitious project: turning human waste into food, to solve the food problem for astronauts.

Waste treatment area on the International Space Station (ISS). Photo: NASA TV/Reuters.

The project is called "Synthetic Biology Recycling Human Waste into Food, Nutritional Supplements and Other Materials: A Closed-Circuit System for Long-Duration Space Exploration". According to Independent, the technology will be funded by NASA at $200,000 per year for three years.

In an announcement on August 14, NASA said this is one of eight projects selected by the agency to meet the urgent needs of the space exploration program. The research will be conducted by Professor Mark Blenner from Clemson University, South Carolina.

Waste disposal on cramped, poorly-ventilated spacecraft has long been a major challenge for NASA, especially when it comes to sanitation and the challenges of zero gravity.

Previously, frozen urine discharged into space from the toilet on the Mir Space Station hit and damaged the solar panels the station used.

If successful, closed-loop waste treatment technology would promote the self-sufficiency of spacecraft and facilitate long-term space exploration journeys to Mars and beyond.

According to VnExpress