A new professorship in "Human Spaceflight Technology" (HSP) has been established in 2023 at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). One of the research focus of this professorship is using microalgae for both O2 production and CO2 fixation through oxygenic photosynthesis into edible biomass for astronauts, as part of the Life Support System (LSS) for future missions. This group will build on the expertise of the experiment PBR@IRS carried out at the University of Stuttgart and incorporate a new fresh view with potential interdisciplinary cooperations with the biotechnology groups already working with algae at the TUM. The HSP LSS laboratory is planned as part of an existing facility, the Algentechnikum, where several experiments to cultivate algae for space applications such as obtaining biokerosene and carbon fibers from algae to serve as fuel and aircraft construction materials, respectively have already taken place. The building is made of a special glass allowing UV radiation to pass through. The facility contains LEDs, allowing to provide light in the 300 to 800 nanometers wavelength range at different intensities as well as a climate control system to simulate any location on Earth, ranging from tropical to very dry. With this potential a lunar or Martian day/night scenario could be simulated. CO2 connections allow the use of CO2-rich atmosphere for algae cultivation. Although this facility was conceived for Earth applications, such a facility opens a wide range of research opportunities for space exploration. This paper will present the new research planned at the HSP Group, with the goal of designing the first microalgae experiment in the lunar surface. The group will research on engineering aspects such as reactor geometry and power-efficient lighting provision, but also on biological aspects such as defining optimal microalgae culture conditions (temperature, light intensity, gas concentration) and long-term cultivation effects.
Santaeufemia et al. (Sun,) studied this question.