Lichen-Mediated Self-Growing Construc8on Materials for Habitat Outfitting on Mars

Abstract

As its next step in space exploration, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) revealed plans to establish a permanent human presence on Mars. To build the centrally located, monolithic habitat, NASA has a history of experimenting with lightweight inflatable habitats to reduce mass and volume. However, the physical structures used to outfit the inflatable must generally be launched by a second spacecraft. This study proposes that, rather than shipping prefabricated outfitting elements to Mars, habitat outfitting can be realized by in-situ construction using cyanobacteria and fungi as building agents. A synthetic lichen system, composed of diazotrophic cyanobacteria and filamentous fungi, can be created to produce abundant biominerals (CaCO3) and biopolymers, which will glue Martian regolith into consolidated building blocks. These self-growing building blocks can be assembled into various structures, such as floors, walls, partitions, and furniture.