SPACE EXPLORATION
Does astrobotany help future space exploration efforts?
Astrobotany is going to be critical for future space exploration, particularly in the realm of providing caloric support for extended spaceflight missions. In the near future it’s unlikely we will use plants as an oxygen source in a bioregenerative life-support system (BLSS) because gas exchange is more easily controlled manually than relying on plants to produce enough oxygen to support a crew. The science is just not precise or reliable enough to depend on just plants for oxygen. However, it will be a huge benefit to supplement caloric intake with plants in space.
The sustainability of harvest in space is another perk that cannot go overlooked. Resupplies to the International Space Station (ISS) are necessary, but resupplies beyond the relatively short distance to the ISS could become impossible, or not time or cost effective. Future
