A review on the effects of low atmospheric pressure on plant cultivation in space: The study of physiological responses and adaptive mechanisms
Document Type : reviewed article
Author
Associate Professor, Aerospace Research Institute, Ministry of Science Research and Technology,Tehran,, Iran
Abstract
Plants are the main components of the bioregenerative life support system in long-term space missions to Mars. To cultivate plants in the Martian conditions, it is necessary to understand how they adapt to low atmospheric pressure. The atmospheric pressure on Mars is very low, about 0.2 to 0.9 kPa, and is much higher on the Earth's surface depending on the altitude above sea level (101 kPa at sea level). Therefore, the structural materials of life support system as well as the plants grown inside it must be able to withstand reduced atmospheric pressure. Facilities and capabilities for plant growth in low atmospheric pressure must be developed for long-term space missions. So far, studies on plant cultivation in low atmospheric pressure have been limited to a few experiments that examine the ability of plants to grow and survive. To understand how plants adapt to low pressure, it is necessary to examine physiological responses through signaling pathways and oxidative stress tolerance mechanisms. In this study, the effect of low atmospheric pressure on the design of space greenhouses, its application in reducing spacecraft mass during long-term voyages, plant physiological responses, pathways of oxidative damage, and molecular mechanisms of tolerance to low atmospheric pressure will be investigated.
Keywords
Subjects
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Volume 5, Issue 1 - Serial Number 9
September 2025Pages 188-196
- Receive Date 08 March 2025
- Revise Date 15 April 2025
- Accept Date 13 July 2025