Chinese scientists have discovered a hardy species of moss in northwest China’s Xinjiang Autonomous Region that may help colonize Mars, a new study says. TASR reports on the basis of a report by Reuters, The Guardian and the New Scientist portal.
Study a team of scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences was published on June 30 by the professional journal The Innovation. In it, scientists describe the results of research on Syntrichia caninervis moss capable of withstanding extreme drought, high doses of radiation, and extremely low temperatures.
On July 16, 1969, the three-member crew of the Apollo 11 mission took off from the American Cape Canaveral aboard a Saturn V rocket. It took 102 hours, 45 minutes and 42 seconds for the lunar module Eagle to land on the surface of the moon on July 20, 1969.
In addition to China, moss on Earth also grows in Tibet and Antarctica, for example, and according to the study, it can serve as a basic and sustaining element of the ecosystem contributing to oxygen production, carbon sequestration and soil fertilization. Agata Zupanská of the SETI Institute in California states that it can transform the rocky surface of Mars and enrich it with nutrients, thus preparing the ground for other types of plants. However, its potential use as a source of livelihood is ruled out due to its unpleasant taste.
The researchers subjected the plant to a series of experiments. They found that it can fully regenerate within 30 days even from a five-year stay in an environment with a temperature of -80 degrees Celsius or after a month in liquid nitrogen with a temperature of -196 degrees Celsius.
At the same time, scientists found that doses of gamma radiation up to 500 grays (Gy) help the moss in regeneration and that it is damaged by extremely high doses above 8000 Gy. Most plants cannot tolerate radiation above 500 Gy. A dose of 50 Gy causes convulsions and death in humans. Gray is the unit of absorbed radiation dose.
However, the scientists did not include the influence of perchlorates in the research, although their abundant occurrence in the Martian soil is assumed. Perchlorates or perchlorates are toxic salts derived from perchloric acid. Their general chemical formula is M+IClO4.
But David Eldridge of the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney warns that if the moss is to thrive, it will also need relief from extreme conditions and an opportunity to regenerate. It is possible on Earth, but the conditions on the surface of Mars are permanently harsh. Eldridge therefore points out that a plant can survive being planted on the surface of the red planet, but it can survive.
Source: vat.pravda.sk
