OUR VISION：
To transform spacecraft into self-sustaining system of life!
MISSION BACKGROUND
As human spaceflight evolves from short-term missions to long-term habitation, astronaut nutrition has emerged as a critical challenge. In space, food gradually loses its nutritional value, while Earth-based resupply missions come with astronomical costs—nearly $100 million per launch! To support humanity's future as an interplanetary species, we need a game-changing solution: a sustainable, in-situ nutrient production system that operates far from Earth.
Inspired by this challenge, our project tackles two fundamental questions:
- How can we produce high-quality nutrition in space, breaking free from Earth's supply chain?
- Can we create a near-zero-waste life-support system by turning astronaut waste into safe, nutritious food?
OUR SOLUTION!
We engineered the amazing hydrogen-oxidizing bacterium Cupriavidus necator H16 into a mini bio-factory! It "eats" astronaut-exhaled CO₂ and recycled nitrogen from urine, then produces human alpha-lactalbumin—a high-quality protein that fights muscle and bone loss in microgravity.
By integrating rational design, metabolic engineering, custom bioreactor design, and computational modeling, we're building an efficient and closed-loop "Space Micro-Farm." Our goal? To relocate essential nutrient production from Earth to space!
necator H16
(ISRU)
System
Q:If you were to live in space for a year, what would you bring?
Our answer: A single strain of Cupriavidus necator H16!