NASA Plans to Grow Fungus and Algae Homes on the Moon for Astronauts

In the near future, humans may reside in mushroom-based colonies on the Moon, thanks to a novel plan by NASA that utilizes fungi, algae, and water. This initiative aims to establish a lunar base to facilitate further space exploration, particularly missions to Mars.

The challenge for NASA lies in the logistics of lunar construction. Transporting traditional building materials like bricks and steel to the Moon is impractical due to high costs—around one million dollars per pound—and uncertainties regarding their durability in the harsh lunar environment.

To address this, NASA is exploring the use of mycotecture, a technique that involves cultivating buildings from fungal spores and algae, according to Al Jazeera. This method not only promises cost efficiency but also adaptability to space conditions.

Chris Maurer, the founder of architecture firm Redhouse, collaborating with NASA, emphasized the impracticality of shipping conventional building materials to the Moon, proposing the use of local resources like lunar soil, water, and mold instead. These materials could be sent to the Moon in a compact, inflatable form and then used to grow structures that could support human life.

These fungal structures are expected to offer significant protection against space hazards, such as intense radiation and micrometeorites. Maurer highlighted the protective capability of the fungal material, noting that just eight centimeters of it could block over 99 percent of radiation, a stark contrast to the ten feet of lunar dust required to achieve the same level of protection.

NASA plans to begin by testing small-scale models on the Moon by 2028 as a precursor to more extensive construction. These bases on the Moon would serve as launchpads for journeys to Mars, where similar fungal-based habitats could be established.