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By Djamila Noelle Grossman
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
South
Pole inhabitants can now indulge on self-grown, fresh
veggies, instead of living off canned and frozen cuisine.
Gene Giacomelli, director of the controlled environment
agriculture program, built a growth chamber that is currently
producing lettuce and other goodies at the South Pole.
He also works on another chamber that is planned to go
to Mars or the moon in a NASA spacecraft, he said.
How does it work?
In extreme environments, such as those of the South Pole
or Mars, plants can be grown in controlled rooms without
windows, using artificial light sources, Giacomelli said.
"We believe that we can grow any crop anywhere, anytime,"
he said. "What I don't add on there is at what cost."
But despite the high costs of such a project, researchers
at the South Pole were in demand for fresh vegetables
because it is impossible to maintain any supply traffic
to and from the pole during the long winters, Giacomelli
said.
As a result, the National Science Foundation, which supervises
research at the South Pole, sent out floor plans and wanted
people to bid on a green chamber that would fit their
needs.
"I guess we were low bidders, we got it. And that's
pretty rare for a university," Giacomelli said.
The chamber was built at the UA in the summer of 2003,
using NSF requirements of size and electrical power, Giacomelli
said. It was then tested and the NSF shipped the chamber
to the South Pole.
Phil Saddler, owner of Saddler Machine Company in Tempe,
lived and worked at the pole in previous years, Giacomelli
said, and was the primary designer and builder of the
green chamber.
Makin' it grow
The plants had to grow from sterile seeds that were brought
to the pole because it is illegal to import soil and live
plants, Giacomelli said. Therefore, all the plants grow
hydroponically, which means they grow in a nutrient solution
without soil.
A glass wall divides the chamber and the real growth room,
where the plants get warm lights, humidity and greenery.
There is also a sitting area where folks can, "play
cards, read a book and watch the plants grow," Giacomelli
said.
The growth chamber not only produces veggies, but also
has a positive psychological effect on people at the pole,
Giacomelli said, because they do not see sunlight during
the long winter.
Hypothetically, 10,000 heads of small lettuce could be
grown in the costly $500,000 chamber annually, but the
pole residents also grow herbs, tomatoes and cucumbers
in it, Giacomelli said.
"We provided a product that solves problems down
there," Giacomelli said. "And we will see in
the future how well it works."
Reaction to the growth chamber reached from "We hate
this piece of junk" to "This is great,"
Giacomelli said, but equally important is that the NSF
was satisfied with the project and wants a longer-term
relationship with the program.
Student involvement
Giacomelli said he hopes to establish a permanent internship
program for students at the pole.
Lane Patterson, who helped build and test the growth chamber,
was lucky enough to be the only UA affiliate to go to
the pole and work with the chamber.
Patterson graduated from the UA Agriculture and Bio Systems
Engineering Department in May, and is currently employed
by Raytheon as a greenhouse operator at the McMurdo station,
located about 1,000 miles from the South Pole, he said.
Raytheon is the contractor that builds all facilities
at the South Pole and is funded by the NSF.
Patterson arrived at the pole in February and went to
McMurdo after one week, where he will stay until October
before coming back to the United States, he said.
He operates a growth chamber at McMurdo and supervises
the UA growth chamber at the South Pole via intranet and
phone, he said.
"Each day is different, but over a week I will seed,
harvest, prune, pollinate and prepare vegetables for the
crew," Patterson said. "There is always something
extra that can be done and the plants keep growing."
According to his observations, people at the pole and
McMurdo have welcomed the growth chamber, Patterson said,
because they never get to see plants in the area.
"The greenhouse is a popular place and when people
come - they help," Patterson said. "Working
with plants in a bright and warm environment is a rare
experience on this continent."
Last week researchers at the South Pole harvested 50 pounds
of lettuce from the growth chamber, which all tasted delicious,
Patterson said.
He said he doesn't know if he will return to Antarctica
any time soon, but he will probably not go to Mars with
the next green chamber.
"Go back to Antarctica? Maybe, we will have to see,"
Patterson said. "As for Mars, that's a little too
far in the future and from Earth for me to make a personal
visit - the moon perhaps."
As one of a few researchers allowed at the Pole and McMurdo
station, Patterson said he "feels privileged."
"Antarctica is awesome!" Patterson said.
Unlike the South Pole green chamber, the Mars chamber
is still snug in the safe rooms at the Campus Agricultural
Center producing lettuce.
NASA dreams
The Mars growth chamber is right now "nothing more
than a demonstration" and unsupported by NASA, Giacomelli
said.
"It looks like a long sausage, about 18 feet long
and about 8 feet in diameter, so a person can stand up
in it," he said. "There are several rows in
which we currently grow lettuce."
The chamber has almost no structure, except for the end
pieces. Held together by cables, which keep it from blowing
away, the chamber utilizes a fan, which blows the plastic
shell up like a balloon, Giacomelli said.
This structure will help astronauts inflate and deflate
it as desired and then pack it into a small piece.
There is an important connection between the South Pole
and the Mars green chambers, Giacomelli said. It is possible
to test the Mars chamber in Antarctica because the environment
there is the closest analog on Earth to the Mars. Both
have very low temperatures and high, dry winds.
"We are working with the NFS and NASA to get a demonstration
down there," Giacomelli said.
The Mars and South Pole programs were "a unique way
to demonstrate our capabilities, raise the flag, so to
speak, University of Arizona," he said. "There
is only one South Pole."
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Arizona
Daily Wildcat -
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