Growing plants on the moon: a design concept pre-study for
the lunar equator

Abstract: This Master's Thesis work in Space Engineering was conducted at NASA Ames
Research Center. It is a design concept pre-study on the feasibility of a
small plant growth module for the lunar equator, based on theoretical
modelling of the radiation thermal balance.
The plant that will be used is a dwarf variety of Arabidopsis thaliana, a
model organism widely used in plant biology research and the plant growth
module will be using ambient light as energy source.

The lunar equator imposes a big challenge due to the altered daylight
pattern. The lunar day is 14 earth days long at the equator, followed by a
14 earth day period of darkness, which gives high variations in temperature
and light intensities.

The design for the plant growth module consists of a totally insulated box
with a glass roof, tilted on the sides that will be facing the sun. Inside,
attached to the roof, is a 45 degrees triangular mirror, providing shade to
the plants when the sun is at zenith and reflecting horizontal morning and
evening sunlight downwards to the plants. The glass roof is made out of two
different types of glasses, with different transmission intervals, so that
heat can radiate out from those sides of the roof that will not face the
sun.

Many different designs were invented and analysed before the final concept
was established. This gives an inside temperature of between 5 and 28
degrees Celsius and a PAR level of between 440 and 710 micromoles per
square meter and second.
Based on the assumptions that were made in the modelling, a plant growth
module on the lunar equator seems feasible. However, before further
improvements of the details in the model can be done, uncertainties in the
parameters have to undergo laboratory testing under lunar similar
conditions and be determined.