Calligeneia

Istanbul | Have seeds will travel!

FRESH FOOD EVEN IN SPACE: CALLI

High-Level Project Summary

We designed a cultivation system called Calli based on the layout of NASA’s APH and Veggie systems. The main logic of Calli is to obtain battel crops in space missions. This dual-functional modular system we have designed, creates a suitable environment for both the packaged foods that astronauts will consume on their journey to Mars, and the crops they will produce on their return journey; which distinguishes itself from its competitors with this feature. In this way, a more practical layout is obtained. The products obtained preserve their vitamin value and thus, products with higher nutritional value are obtained compared to other systems.

Link to Project "Demo"

https://youtu.be/DFmnzOyuWV8

Link to Final Project

https://drive.google.com/file/d/11vVyRtZOno2kADs7Sxkiq1An7ImWrghI/view?usp=sharing

Detailed Project Description

We, as Calligeneia, also known as Mother Nature, have created a solution to the challenge “Have Seeds Will Travel!”, a challenge about food production in space. As you can see on the screen, we designed a system called Calli, a system that allows astronauts to both store and grow food during their mission to Mars and is inspired by NASA’s Veggie and APH systems. The thing that divides Calli and other produced and patented projects is that Calli manages to use one system for two functions and thus saves space,with practical methods.

So how does Calli do it? The main logic behind Calli’s system is that it can use the storage area for packaged food to produce plants that will be consumed by the crew as they come back from Mars. Astronauts first eat the packaged food stored in a closed, dry area as they leave for Mars. When the packages on one shelf are consumed, the plate holding them will be removed manually, starting the plant production.

The system is aeroponic, a method that increases the nutritive value of the plants growing in them while sterilizing and protecting the system from bugs and insects. The clean water acquired from grey water is pumped with the water pump under the system, and the water is brought to the floating roots of the plants, standing on a plate. The mixture of water and fertilizer is sprayed to the roots and so on. The plants get the amount of light they need with double-spectrum lights, items that replicate the day cycle. Astronauts will have the knowledge of the harvest time via 200+ sensors that give data real-time. This system can also be controlled on Earth, accessing the data as well. A few examples of plants that can be produced with this system can be Microtina Tomato and the Thale cress.

But, how does Calli heat up a section while cooling down the other? This is when the insulation system comes in. Between the two plates, there are coats of aerogel- gap- aerogel, which we use the insulation feature of aerogel. Calli gains the energy to do all this via the already-existing solar panels of the shuttle. We have covered the outside with titanium, a material that is non-toxic, resistant and light while we made the glass to view the plants out of polycarbonate, a material used in astronauts’ gear as well. Also, we decided to cover the shelves with graphene, as it’s easy to shape, and cheap.

The system gains its modular function by being able to be easily re-designed depending on the size of the environment, and the amount of people that will use it. Just like how it is with all the other projects, our project has its flaws too. Aeroponic systems require more oxygen, which is something we may not be able to provide in space. However, this problem could be solved by using a reactor that transforms carbon dioxide to oxygen, whose prototype already exists. In addition, in order to increase the efficiency of the project in the future, it is possible to transfer the heat from the cooled shelf to the other between the shelves that are simultaneously cooling and heating. Right now, it costs about 3.000 dollars to create a 60x70x200 cm Calli system. The money needed can be provided via NASA or volunteering sponsors.

Space Agency Data

We mainly used NASA’s datas on the APH and Veggie systems and built our idea based around them. The parts we were inspired are;

Being detachable (APH)
Involving LED’s that mimic the day cycle (APH)
Having a water tank etc.(APH)
Having sections for each plant (see “Cushions”) (Veggie)

The idea of having a capsule-like environment was based on the APH system as well. The data we researched from NASA helped us develop and create this project a lot.

Hackathon Journey

As Calligeneia, we learned to work as a team, to manage time and stress, and to agree on a common idea in case of conflict in our Space Apps adventure. We managed our hackathon process more efficiently by assigning tasks. At the same time, we did not forget to have fun. Since each of us is drawn to nature, the topic of farming in space excites us, so we created a solution for the "Have Seeds Will Travel" challenge. While structuring our project, we gathered the best features under one roof by researching from many different sources. Thank you to all the organizations that made this hackathon experience possible for us. We look forward to the next hackathon!