High-Level Project Summary
The selling point of our project is its self-sufficiency and closed system. We make use of feasible innovations to achieve this. We programmed Arduinos to check for optimum temperature, humidity, and soil water content. Furthermore, we also made sure our system is near self-sufficient(ie a closed loop) which requires less maintenance/human intervention. We also made a working model. The seed is enclosed within a bio bubble with an interconnected drainage system that can be scaled up easily. it is covered with a leaded acrylic glass which offers protection from radiation and allows light transmission. the leaves are exposed to light ranging from 400 – 520 NanoMetre to encourage growth.
Link to Project "Demo"
Link to Final Project
Detailed Project Description
- Monitoring temperature, humidity, and moisture content in the soil
- Programmed on C-language and gave it instructions to make automated like the feedback system in our pancreas(regulation of glycogen and insulin). We were inspired to adopt the same system so that whenever the bio bubble falls below certain parameters it automatically brings it back to optimum levels
- Covered with a sheet of lead acrylic to prevent radiation harming the crops
- New advancements in "deployable structures " help us in packing it efficiently during launch which can be inflated later. The base of our model is made from such a material (for more info check this link https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conference-proceedings-of-spie/10966/1096603/Inflatable-technology-using-flexible-materials-to-make-large-structures/10.1117/12.2500091.full)
- The transpired water can be brought back again, as the water vapor in the air touches the cool topside of the bubble(we will be running cold temperature on the top surface of the acrylic glass) ,it condenses and the water is channeled to a storage unit for astronauts to drink pure water
- The closed system of CO2 and O2 has been explained in great depth in our ppt
- A key advantage of our model is its application in arid regions of the earth. Since those regions are blessed with sunshine, rerouting of power(as Sabatier reaction becomes inviable) to maximize solar energy will do the job. for the water, we can dig long bores in the earth to get water from the depths below(aquifers) A viable option in the UAE
Space Agency Data
Our design is inspired by the "veggie" system already deployed on the ISS. the size and dimensions were perfect for our creation so we decided to use the same. Initially launched in a collapsed state of less than 1 cubic foot, weighs less than 8 kg, and powered by the Sabatier reaction and solar energy. It has a growing area of approximately 1.7 square feet and a maximum growing height of 18 inches. Since the core principles of both projects are the same we have adopted most of its salient features(why re-invent the wheel again ). We found its setbacks and our system improves upon them.
Hackathon Journey
As the saying goes "sometimes it's not the destination but the experiences and skills learned throughout the journey". likewise, my team echoes the same feeling. we were motivated to choose this topic as it made us hopeful for the future. nowadays there are many billionaires on the race of human colonization of mars and we would like to contribute in any way whatsoever to this turning point of our modern history. all of us are seasoned programmers and love to learn and solve challenges by applying the scientific method. by doing so we were able to narrow down our possible solutions, risks, and practicality. We spent the majority of the time thinking about the problem and spent the remaining on working on the solution as instructed to us in the webinar. In retrospect, this helped us a lot as it helped declutter our ideas and agree on solutions. Whenever we had differences in opinion we listened to each other made a pros and cons table so we could carefully weed out the ineffective thoughts. it was a carefully crafted risk assessment and taking sacrifices wherever it provided a bigger benefit. We would like to thank all the staff from the computer department from the school as they motivated us to take on the project, helped us gain materials, and corrected logical errors in our code.
References
- https://data.nasa.gov/browse?q=plants%20in%20space&sortBy=relevance
- https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/146558main_RecyclingEDA(final)%204_10_06.pdf
- https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conference-proceedings-of-spie/10966/1096603/Inflatable-technology-using-flexible-materials-to-make-large-structures/10.1117/12.2500091.full
- Arduino, LCD screen, water detector
- C language for programming
Tags
#innovation,#SeedsInSpace,#SelfSufficient,#Space,#Tech,#Future
Global Judging
This project has been submitted for consideration during the Judging process.