Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

Sweet! Galactic Molecule Could Point to Alien Life

Galactic molecules. Credit: NASA

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An organic sugar molecule which is directly linked to the origin of life has been detected in a region of our galaxy where habitable planets could exist. Using the IRAM radio telescope in France, an international team of scientists found the molecule in a massive star forming region of space, about 26,000 light years from Earth. “This is an important discovery, as it is the first time glycolaldehyde, a basic sugar, has been detected near a star-forming region where planets that could potentially harbour life may exist,” said Dr. Serena Viti, one of the paper’s authors. Glycolaldehyde can react to form ribose, a key constituent of the nucleic acid RNA, thought to be the central molecule in the origin of life.

Glycolaldehyde has previously only been detected near the center of our galaxy, where conditions are extreme compared to the rest of the galaxy. But its discovery in an area far from the galactic center in an area known as ‘G31.41+0.31’ suggests that the production of this key ingredient for life could be common throughout the galaxy. This is good news in our search for alien life, because a wide spread of the molecule improves the chances of its existing alongside other molecules vital to life, and in regions where Earth-like planets may exist.

Glycolaldehyde. Credit: PhysOrg.com
Professor Keith Mason, Chief Executive of the STFC, said that “the discovery of an organic sugar molecule in a star-forming region of space is very exciting and will provide incredibly useful information in our search for alien life. Research like this, combined with the vast array of other astronomical projects involving UK researchers, is continually expanding our knowledge of the Universe and keeping the UK at the forefront of astronomy.”

Read more in the team’s abstract.

Sources: PhysOrg.com, RedOrbit

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

Microbial Life on the Moon?

Shackelton Crater (and Earth) as seen by Kaguya. Credit: JAXA

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One astrobiologist claims the deep, dark craters on the Moon might contain traces of early life from meteorites blasted off the Earth by asteroids billions of years ago. Joop Houtkooper, from the University of Giessen in Germany says studying these craters could reveal clues about the origin and evolution of life on Earth or even contain remnants of life from other planets in the Solar System, such as Mars. Houtkooper is also one of the few scientists who insist that the experiments done by the Viking Mars Landers in the 1970’s actually did reveal microbial life in the Martian soil, and earlier this year, Houtkooper predicted microbes could be detected by NASA’s Phoenix lander. So, could this new claim about microbes on the Moon be just the latest in a long series of contentious claims, or is Houtkooper onto something?

Houtkooper said the best place for finding evidence of life is on the moon is within the Shackleton Crater at the Moon’s south pole. Houtkooper presented his ideas at the recent 2008 European Planetary Science Congress in Germany. However, this was before results were released from the Japanese Kaguya lunar orbiter, which peered into Shackleton Crater and found no appreciable evidence of water ice. So, while ice on the moon hasn’t been ruled out completely, right now, the evidence isn’t there.

But Houtkooper said the evidence could come in the form of organic molecules, fossil remains, dead organisms, or even organisms in a dormant state that could be revived, such as bacterial spores. He said it is even possible that microbes could have survived for a short while after impact. Although there is no atmosphere to support life today, a temporary, thin atmosphere could have formed shortly after an impact event, as water and gases from the space rock vaporized, Houtkooper claimed.

The permanently shaded craters would be at almost a constant deep freeze temperature of -248ºC, ideal for freezing water and gases such as nitrogen, carbon dioxide or methane, and preserving traces of life undisturbed by sunlight and solar winds.

Other astrobiologists say the theory is possible, but would be a long shot.

“The microbial system on Earth extends to a depth of several kilometers into the crust, and so rocks blasted off the Earth by asteroid impacts could well have contained microbes,” said astrobiologist Malcolm Walter from the University of New South Wales in Sydney.

“I’d be very conservative about this idea,” said Lewis Dartnell, an astrobiologist at University College London (UCL) in the United Kingdom. “If, say, a comet landed right in the middle of a crater, then it’s possible”.

While Houtkooper agreed the idea is controversial, he maintains that there’s a good chance that remains of life could be found – and the latest mission to the Moon could provide the proof. India’s Chandrayaan-1 space probe launched in October will be specifically looking for ice deposits at the lunar poles.

“The long-existing knowledge about the Moon’s rotation axis implies that there are places in eternal shadow at the Moon’s poles,” Houtkooper said. “That means exceptionally low temperatures at, and some depth below, the surface there.”

Source: Cosmos Magazine

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

Mars Methane Mystery Still Beckons

Discoveries of methane on Mars suggest it is actively being replenished. (Image: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin, G Neukum)

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We’ve known about the methane in Mars’ atmosphere for over four years now. But we don’t know where it is coming from. On Earth, methane is produced from biological agents: rotting vegetation or flatulence from large animals like cows. But, of course, with our extensive explorations of Mars with rovers and high-resolution orbiting cameras, we’re fairly sure there are no Martian bovine equivalents chewing cud from the foliage on the Red Planet. Even if life existed in the past on Mars, methane is broken down quite quickly by sunlight, and scientists have calculated that methane should only exist for a few hundred years in the Martian atmosphere. The only possibility is that somehow, either chemically or biologically, the methane is being replaced on a regular basis. And now, two recent reports outlining separate discoveries on Mars make this methane mystery even more intriguing.

Methane was discovered on Mars by three independent groups in 2003 – 2004. One detection was made using the Mars Express spacecraft, another used observations from the Keck II and Gemini South telescopes, and the third used the Canada-France-Hawaii telescope.

And the mystery of how methane on Mars is being replenished has scientists continuing their observations in an effort to understand what’s happening on Mars. Michael Mumma of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland was one of the original methane discoverers. Observations he and his team have made over the last four years show methane is not spread evenly around Mars, but concentrated in a few “hotspots.” They have seen that methane clouds spanning hundreds of kilometers form over these hotspots and dissipate within a year – much shorter than the 300 – 600 years it was thought to take for atmospheric methane to be destroyed by sunlight. If methane is being destroyed so quickly, it also must be created at far higher rates than previously thought. Mumma reported these results at a planetary science conference last month.

Nili Fossae region on Mars, a methane "hotspot: Credit: NASA/JPL/U of AZ

One of the hotspots is Nili Fossae a fissure that has been eroded and partly filled in by sediments and clay-rich ejecta from a nearby crater. Could a living ecosystem be hidden here under the Martian surface? On Earth, subterranean microbes survive without sunlight, free oxygen, or contact with the surface. Additionally, the prospect becomes more intriguing when it is known on Earth, most deep-surface microbes are primitive, single-celled organisms that power their metabolism with chemical energy from their environment. These microbes are called “methanogens” because they make methane as a waste product.

Nili Fossae is one of the possible landing sites for the Mars Science Laboratory, the next generation of rover currently set to head off the Red Planet next year.

A pair of pit caves on Mars. Could life exist inside? Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona
A pair of pit caves on Mars. Could life exist inside? Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

But astrobiologists aren’t ruling out the possibility of some type of ongoing chemical process on Mars, which could be producing the methane. But even this is intriguing, because it means there are active processes going on inside Mars. One idea proposed in a recent paper is that methane clathrates are near the Martian surface, and are constantly releasing small amounts of methane as temperatures and pressure near the surface change.
Methane clathrates are solid forms of water that contain a large amount of methane within its crystal structure.

Caroline Thomas and her colleagues at the Universite de Franche-Comte say the clathrates could only exist near the surface of Mars if the atmosphere had once been methane rich. Otherwise the clathrates could never have formed. One possibility is that the atmosphere was once temporarily enriched by a comet impact. Also, the discovery of gray crystalline hematite deposits on the surface could be a proof of an early methane-rich Martian atmosphere.

Otherwise, the researchers say, the only other possibility is a biological source.

“Our results show that methane enriched clathrate hydrates could be stable in the subsurface of Mars only if a primitive CH4-rich atmosphere has existed or if a subsurface source of CH4 has been (or is still) present,” the researchers write.

So what does all this mean? The Mars Science Laboratory rover might have the ability to find out, or at least bring us closer to solving this mystery. Otherwise it will take a fairly large breakthrough from the other spacecraft and telescopes observing Mars. But it’s possible we might not fully understand why Mars has methane until humans actually go there themselves to find out.

Sources: arXiv, arXiv blog, New Scientist, Nature

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

Did Lightning and Volcanoes Spark Life on Earth?

Chilean Volcano in 2008 creates lightning. Credit: AP

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Maybe the fictional Dr. Frankenstein wasn’t so crazy after all. Two scientists have resurrected an old experiment, breathing life into a “dead” notion about how life began on our planet. New analysis shows that lightning and gases from volcanic eruptions could have given rise to the first life on Earth.

“It’s alive!”…


Back in the early 1950s, two chemists Stanley Miller and Harold Urey of the University of Chicago did an experiment that tried to recreate the conditions of a young Earth to see how the building blocks of life could have arisen. They used a closed loop of glass chambers and tubes with water and different mixes of hydrogen, ammonia, and methane; the gases thought to be in Earth’s atmosphere billions of years ago. Then they zapped the mixture with an electrical current, to try and confirm a hypothesis that lightning may have triggered the origin of life. After a few days, the mixture turned brown.
When Miller analyzed the water, he found it contained amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins — life’s toolkit. The spark provided the energy for the molecules to recombine into amino acids, which rained out into the water. The experiment showed how simple molecules could be assembled into the more complex molecules necessary for life by natural processes, like lightning in Earth’s primordial atmosphere.
The apparatus used for Miller's original experiment. Credit: NASA
But there was a problem. Theoretical models and analyses of ancient rocks eventually convinced scientists that Earth’s earliest atmosphere was not rich in hydrogen, so many researchers thought the experiment wasn’t an accurate re-creation of early Earth. But the experiments performed by Miller and Urey were ground-breaking.

“Historically, you don’t get many experiments that might be more famous than these; they re-defined our thoughts on the origin of life and showed unequivocally that the fundamental building blocks of life could be derived from natural processes,” said Adam Johnson, a graduate student with the NASA Astrobiology Institute team at Indiana University, Bloomington. Johnson is the lead author on a paper that resurrects the old origin-of-life experiments, with some tantalizing new findings.

Miller died in 2007. Two former graduate students of Miller’s –geochemists Jim Cleaves of the Carnegie Institution of Washington (CIW) in Washington, D.C., and Jeffrey Bada of Indiana University, Bloomington–were examining samples left in Miller’s lab. They found the vials of products from the original experiment and decided to take a second look with updated technology. Using extremely sensitive mass spectrometers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Cleaves, Bada, Johnson and colleagues found traces of 22 amino acids in the experimental residues. That is about double the number originally reported by Miller and Urey and includes all of the 20 amino acids found in living things.

Miller actually ran three slightly different experiments, one of which injected steam into the gas to simulate conditions in the cloud of an erupting volcano. “We found that in comparison to Miller’s classic design everyone is familiar with from textbooks, samples from the volcanic apparatus produced a wider variety of compounds,” said Bada.

This is significant because thinking on the composition of Earth’s early atmosphere has changed. Instead of being heavily laden with hydrogen, methane, and ammonia, many scientists now believe Earth’s ancient atmosphere was mostly carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen. But volcanoes were active during this time period, and volcanoes produce lightning since collisions between volcanic ash and ice particles generate electric charge. The organic precursors for life could have been produced locally in tidal pools around volcanic islands, even if hydrogen, methane, and ammonia were scarce in the global atmosphere.

So, this breathes life into the notion of lightning jump-starting life on Earth. Although Earth’s primordial atmosphere was not hydrogen-rich, gas clouds from volcanic eruptions did contain the right combination of molecules. Is it possible that volcanoes seeded our planet with life’s ingredients? While no one knows what happened next, the researchers are continuing their experiments in an attempt to determine if volcanoes and lightning are the reasons we’re here.

The paper was published in Science on Oct. 17, 2008

Sources: NASA, ScienceNOW

Posted on by Ian O'Neill

Electrical Activity on Titan Confirmed: The Spark for Life?

False colour image of Titan's atmosphere. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute/ESA

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Titan not only has an atmosphere it has hydrocarbon lakes, oceans, sand dunes and now research has just been published proving Saturn’s moon is sparkling with electrical activity. Scientists are in general agreement that organic molecules, the precursors to life on Earth, are a consequence of lightning in the atmosphere. Now, using data from the Huygens probe that descended through Titan’s atmosphere in 2005 and continued transmitting for 90 minutes after touchdown, Spanish scientists have “unequivocally” proven that Titan has electrical storms too. The presence of electrical activity in the atmosphere is causing much excitement as this could mean that organic compounds may be found in abundance on the Titan surface.

The fruits from the Cassini-Huygens mission are coming thick and fast. Only yesterday, Nancy reviewed the discovery of liquid hydrocarbon lakes by Cassini’s Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS). Although possible lakes have been theorized, it is only now that there is observational proof of the existence of such features. Now, three years after the Huygens probe dropped through Titan’s atmosphere, scientists have made another crucial discovery: Titan experiences electrical activity in its atmosphere. Now Titan has all the necessary components for life; it has an atmosphere with electrical activity, increasing the opportunity for prebiotic organic compounds to form, thus increasing the possibility for life to evolve.

According to Juan Antonio Morente from the University of Granada, Titan is already considered a “unique world in the solar system” since the early 20th Century when Spanish astronomer José Comas y Solá made the discovery that the Saturn moon had an atmosphere. This is what makes Titan special, it has a thick atmosphere, something that is not observed on any other natural satellite in the Solar System.

“On this moon clouds with convective movements are formed and, therefore, static electrical fields and stormy conditions can be produced. This also considerably increases the possibility of organic and prebiotic molecules being formed, according to the theory of the Russian biochemist Alexander I. Oparín and the experiment of Stanley L. Miller [who managed to synthesise organic compounds from inorganic compounds through electrical discharges] That is why Titan has been one of the main objectives of the Cassini-Huygens joint mission of NASA and the European Space Agency” – Juan Antonio Morente.

Morente and his team analysed data from Huygens’ Mutual Impedance Probe (MIP) that measured the atmospheric electrical field. The MIP instrument was primarily used to measure the atmosphere’s electrical conductivity but it also acted as a dipolar antenna, detecting the natural electric field. The MIP was therefore able to detect a set of spectral peaks of extremely low frequency (ELF) radio signals (known as “Schumann resonances”). These ELF peaks are formed between the moon’s ionosphere and a huge resonant cavity in which electromagnetic fields are confined.

The detection of these signals have led the Spanish researchers to state that it is “irrefutable” evidence of electrical activity on Titan, not dissimilar to static charge that builds up in the terrestrial atmosphere, leading to electrical storms.

Source: Scientific Blogging

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

No Life Possible at Edges of the Pinwheel Galaxy

The bright red spots at the edge of the Pinwheel Galaxy means bad news for life. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/STScI

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Another beautiful image from the Spitzer Space Telescope; in this case, it’s Messier 101, more commonly known as the Pinwheel Galaxy. But the pretty red highlights at the edges of the galaxy are bad news for anyone looking for evidence of life. “If you were going look for life in Messier 101, you would not want to look at its edges,” said Karl Gordon of the Space Telescope Science Institute. “The organics can’t survive in these regions, most likely because of high amounts of harsh radiation.” The red color highlights a zone where organic molecules called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are present throughout most of the galaxy, suddenly disappear.

PAHs are dusty, carbon-containing molecules found in star nurseries. They’re also found on Earth in barbeque pits, exhaust pipes and anywhere combustion reactions take place. Scientists believe this space dust has the potential to be converted into the stuff of life.

The Pinwheel galaxy is located about 27 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. It has one of the highest known gradients of metals (elements heavier than helium) of all nearby galaxies in our universe. In other words, its concentrations of metals are highest at its center, and decline rapidly with distance from the center. This is because stars, which produce metals, are squeezed more tightly into the galaxy’s central quarters.

Gordon’s team also wanted to learn more about the gradient of the PAHs. Using Spitzer’s Infrared Array Camera and the Infrared Spectograph to carefully analyze the spectra of the PAHs, astronomers can more precisely identify the PAH features, and even deduce information about their chemistry and temperature. The astronomers found that, like the metals, the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons decrease in concentration toward the outer portion of the galaxy. But, unlike the metals, these organic molecules quickly drop off and are no longer detected at the very outer rim.

“There’s a threshold at the rim of this galaxy, where the organic material is getting destroyed,” said Gordon.

The findings also provide a better understanding of the conditions under which the very first stars and galaxies arose. In the early universe, there were not a lot of metals or PAHs around. The outskirt of the Pinwheel galaxy therefore serves as a close-up example of what the environment might look like in a distant galaxy.

In this image, infrared light with a wavelength of 3.6 microns is colored blue; 8-micron light is green; and 24-micron light is red. All three of Spitzer instruments were used in the study: the infrared array camera, the multiband imaging photometer and the infrared spectrograph.

Original News Source: JPL

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

How Future Missions Could Detect Organisms Inside Rocks on Mars

Jarosite in New Zealand. Credit: Michelle Kotler

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For a geologist, looking inside a rock is essential to help determine the makeup and history of the rock sample. That’s why geologists have rock hammers, and also why the Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, have their Rock Abrasion Tool. For future missions to Mars, or even for a sample return mission, one of the main goals will be to look for signs of life, past or present, that might be hiding inside the rocks. Scientists are working on a new, simple technique for detecting biological and pre-biotic molecules that become trapped inside the minerals in rocks.

This new technique utilizes a laser-based optical and chemical imager or LOCI. A single laser shot vaporizes a small portion of the surface into individual ions. These pass through a mass spectrometer, which can identify each ion by how much mass and charge it has. The great thing about this technique is that the sample requires no preparation: just shoot and detect.

Previous techniques for required that the minerals be dissolved in a solution or mixed in with some other medium, which dilutes the sample and runs the risk of introducing contamination.

Jill Scott of Idaho National Laboratory with the laser-based optical and chemical imager (LOCI). Credit: Idaho National Lab
Jill Scott of Idaho National Laboratory with the laser-based optical and chemical imager (LOCI). Credit: Idaho National Lab
This procedure was tested on Earth using samples of the mineral jarosite. Jarosite is a yellowish-brown sulfate mineral containing iron, potassium and hydroxide. It is found in places around the world such as southern California beaches and volcanic fields in New Zealand. It forms only in the presence of highly acidic water.

In 2004, jarosite was discovered on Mars by the rover Opportunity. Scientists immediately recognized the find as clear evidence for past water on the red planet.

But there is something else about jarosite that makes it interesting. On Earth, for jarosite to form, oxidation of the rock must occur – usually the rock is pyrite (ferrous sulfide). And on Earth, the oxidation reaction is usually performed by certain “rock-eating” microorganisms.

Scientists say the rate of the jarosite formation would be extremely slow without microbes, as well as without the presence of water.

Whether jarosite can form without the assistance of these microbes is very difficult to say, since every corner of Earth is occupied by little bugs of some sort or another.

And yet, there remains the tantalizing possibility that jarosite on Mars exists because of some little, rock-eating microbes. If so, remnants of these organisms may be locked in the mineral. And there’s only one way to find out: look inside Mars rocks.

Right now, this method couldn’t be used on the next bigger Mars rover, the Mars Science Laboratory, which will hopefully launch in 2009. The LOCI instrument is just too big and too complex to use remotely, said David Beaty, chief scientist of the Mars Exploration Directorate at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

But it could be used on a sample return mission. But hopefully, scientists will be able to develop a smaller, simpler version to be used on future missions to look for signs of life in rocks on Mars.

Original News Source: Astrobiology Magazine

Posted on by Ian O'Neill

NASA Needs to Take Space Sex Seriously

The Space Station. (NASA)

The US space agency needs to have better consideration for the sexual needs of their astronauts during long missions in space. Also, more research needs to be done to investigate human embryo development in zero-gravity or low-gravity environments, especially if NASA is serious about setting up a colony on Mars in the next 30 years. These warnings have been issued by a NASA advisor at a time when the agency doesn’t have enough funds allocated for human space physiology. These concerns are by no means trivial, basic human needs and the ability to procreate beyond Earth may be critical for missions lasting years…

At a time when the question “Can we have sex in space?” is becoming more and more popular by the future space tourists hoping to become a member of the 100-mile high club, a serious issue is beginning to surface for our long-term presence in space. Humans have needs, and although the astronauts selected by NASA, ESA and the other international space agencies are highly professional individuals, Dr Jason Kring, a NASA advisor and assistant professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Florida, has pointed out that sexual desire is as potent as the need for water and food. “But the bottom line is that, like hunger and thirst, sex is a basic biological motive,” he said in an interview with the UK’s Sunday Telegraph. “The potential round-trip mission to Mars could take three years. It doesn’t make sense to assume that these men and women are going to have no thoughts of it for three years. Nasa and other space agencies should address this in their training and in crew selection.” Kring suggests our future long-term space explorers should replicate what the early polar explorers did and take a colleague as a lover to minimize sexual frustration.

It is difficult to predict the stresses long-term missions into space and to other planets may cause, but there is a very practical reason for this worry. Heightened stress on a spaceship will create an increased risk of confrontations, lack of focus and mission failure. When considering a possible 3-year mission to Mars, mission scientists will want the crew to be as calm and stress-free as possible.

Kring adds that future manned spacecraft to the Moon and Mars should be designed to optimize the privacy of astronauts so relationships can be consummated. This basic human need was recognized by explorers here on Earth where South Pole expedition members took on “expedition spouses” as sexual partners for the duration. When the expedition was over, the explorers would return home to their families and spouses. Pairing up with a colleague therefore sidesteps the biological issues of the possibility of “going without” for months, or years at a time. There are obvious questions surrounding the psychological effect of taking on “expedition spouses” (especially the effect on the partners waiting here on Earth for the astronauts return!), but the biological question will at least have an answer.

The fact remains however, that we are naive of the effects of sex in space, let alone if it is even a pleasurable experience. The mechanics of “human docking procedures” (as described by tests carried out by the Russian space agency) are a lot more complicated when in zero gravity. NASA researchers have pointed out that additional problems include motion sickness, increased sweating and a drop in blood pressure – all of which are big problems for astronauts in space.

There are also huge ethical questions hanging over possible pregnancies in space. Zero-G tests on rat embryos produced decreased skeletal and brain development, the effects on a human embryo will remain a mystery. Also, even if astronauts are having sex for purely recreational reasons, the effectiveness of oral contraception has been brought into question, making the whole procedure highly problematic, risking accidental pregnancies (something no space agency is prepared for, especially during missions to the Moon or Mars).

The fact remains that NASA continues to cut back biological research in favor of future Moon missions, so much about human sexuality in space will remain a mystery. This point is highlighted by a NASA spokesperson who stated, “We don’t study sexuality in space.”

Source: Sunday Telegraph

Posted on by Ian O'Neill

Japanese Special Brew: Space Beer

In 1985, Coke was flown into space. The carbon dioxide fizzed all the way through the zero-G blob (NASA)

Well, the title is a little misleading. It should read something like, “Japanese Scientists Brew Beer from Barley that Spent Five Months on the International Space Station,” but that seemed a little too long. It’s not actually beer brewed in space, more beer made from ingredients grown on the ISS. Regardless, the idea is pretty cool. A Japanese company wants to produce 100 bottles of space beer, but commercializing the product may not be a reality quite yet. Even if you might not be able to buy space beer at your local pub, there might not be much different from the normal stuff anyway. But it is a step in the right direction toward the first bar on the Moon or Mars…

The Japanese, known for their traditional alcoholic tipple Saké, are about to become known for their space beer brewing exploits too. Using third-generation barley grown on the ISS for 5 months in 2006, the brewing company Sapporo is hoping to roll out their first 100 bottles of “Space Beer” by this November. The company has been working with Okayama University biologist Manabu Sugimoto and the Russian space agency on producing edible products grown in orbit. This is all in the effort to aid the science behind growing sustainable produce in space for future long-term missions, greatly benefiting future manned settlement plans on the Moon, and eventually Mars.

“In the future, we may reach a point where humans will spend an extended period of time in space and must grow food to sustain ourselves […] In the long run, we hope our space research will be not just about producing food, but about enjoying food and relaxing [in space].” – Manabu Sugimoto.

Sapporo Classic Beer (Toby Oxborrow)

On analysing the DNA of barley grown in space and comparing it with barley grown here on Earth, there appears to be no difference between the strains. These results will be presented in July at a conference in Canada with a focus on the cultivation of plants in a space environment. Barley is a hardy plant, allowing it to grow in challenging environments in a range of temperatures. It is also high in fibre and nutrients, essential for the health of astronauts and future space colonists. Making beer from barley grown in space may seem pretty inconsequential, but once this is achieved, more products familiar here on Earth may be grown and manufactured in space.

As for brewing beer in a zero-G environment, this may be many years off. In separate experiments held by NASA in the 1980’s on carbonated drinks, it was found that the “fizz” cannot rise in the liquid (as there is no gravity, pictured top). The foam you’d associate with the head on a pint of beer would be non-existent in zero-G as the bubbles become suspended within the liquid. This has the unappealing effect of producing “wet burps” when drunk by astronauts – the liquid does not become separated from the gas, expelling the gas by belching also expels some liquid. This is one of the main reasons why carbonated drinks are not on the ISS menu.

For now, space beer, drunk in space, will probably be confined to consumption on planets, where gravity will help alleviate any messy burps…

Sources: Physorg.com, New Scientist

Posted on by Ian O'Neill

The Human Brain in Space: Euphoria and the “Overview Effect” Experienced by Astronauts

The integration of spirituality and science have been taught by scholars of many faiths for years (mi2g.com)

Could be the best example yet of being “spaced out”? When in space, astronauts have repeatedly reported inexplicable euphoria, a “cosmic connection” or an increased sensitivity to their place in the Universe. The experience sounds like the ultimate high, or the ultimate enlightening; it would appear that without trying, astronauts are able to attain a similar mental state as meditating Buddhist monks. So what is happening when the human body is in space? Does zero-gravity create new connections in the brain? Or is it a natural human response to the vastness of space and realizing just how small we are in comparison? What ever the reason, it looks like even when astronauts are back on solid ground, they have changed profoundly…

On March 6th, 1969, Rusty Schweikart experienced a feeling that the whole universe was profoundly connected. At the time, he was on a postponed space walk outside his Apollo 9 Lunar Module, carrying out tests for the forthcoming Moon landings. Already having suffered from space sickness (hence delaying the EVA) he felt a euphoric sensation:

“When you go around the Earth in an hour and a half, you begin to recognize that your identity is with that whole thing. That makes a change… it comes through to you so powerfully that you’re the sensing element for Man.” – Russell “Rusty” Schweikart.

Two years later, Apollo 14 astronaut, Edgar Mitchell (joint record holder with Alan Shepard for longest ever Moon walk of 9 hours and 17 minutes) reported experiencing an “Overview Effect”. He described the sensation gave him a profound sense of connectedness, with a feeling of bliss and timelessness. He was overwhelmed by the experience. He became profoundly aware that each and every atom in the Universe was connected in some way, and on seeing Earth from space he had an understanding that all the humans, animals and systems were a part of the same thing, a synergistic whole. It was an interconnected euphoria.

Schweikart and Mitchell’s experiences are not isolated anomalies, many other astronauts since the 1970’s have reported this Overview Effect. Andy Newberg, a neuroscientist/physician with experience in space medicine, hopes to find out whether this is an actual psychological phenomenon. Perhaps there is a medical reason for an actual change in an astronaut’s brain function when in space. What’s more, he’s noticed a psychological change in the men and women that have come back from space:

“You can often tell when you’re with someone who has flown in space, its palpable.” – Andy Newberg

Newberg has scanned many brains to try to understand how humans reach this euphoric state on Earth. The religious communities, transcendental mediators and others around the world are able to experience similar states and have been the focus of interest to neuroscientists. In some cases, the meditation leads some people to view the whole cosmos as an interconnected quantum web, where consciousness is not separate, but a part of the Universe. Now Newberg hopes to monitor the brain of one of the first space tourists so a better grasp of the brain function of a human in zero-G can be understood.

Edgar Mitchell has said that his personal event has changed his life, revealing a Universe that had remained hidden until he experienced the Overview Effect on that Apollo 14 mission in 1971. Whether this effect is a physical change in the brain, or a deeper, yet to be discovered event, Newberg hopes to find some answers.

Source: The Daily Galaxy