Biotechnology in Space: Preparing Humans for Mars

Main points — free preview

• Long-duration spaceflight imposes biological constraints that engineering alone cannot solve — radiation, closed-loop food production, microbiome stability, and bone-muscle loss require living-system interventions.
• NASA's Human Research Program and ISS National Lab experiments have tested plant growth, microbial life support, and human physiology in microgravity — building an evidence base for Mars-class missions.
• Closed-loop life support systems like ESA's MELiSSA treat biology as infrastructure: recycling waste, producing food, and maintaining habitable atmospheres inside spacecraft and surface habitats.