US EditionChernobyl Fungus Shows Promise as Radiation Shield for Mars Missions
Radiotolerant fungi from Chernobyl show promise as lightweight, self-regenerating radiation shields for space habitats, potentially protecting astronauts on Moon and Mars missions.
- Experiments in orbit showed Chernobyl-derived radiotolerant fungi can reduce harmful cosmic radiation, and researchers say such barriers could protect astronauts on Moon and Mars long-duration missions.
- Decades after the April 1986 explosions at Chernobyl nuclear power plant, reactor number four, created a 1,600 square mile exclusion zone, researchers found dark mold patches and more than 35 fungal types.
- Researchers found that melanin-rich fungi absorb radiation and use `radiosynthesis`, with International Space Station experiments showing faster growth and fungal layers blocking radiation.
- Because the fungi tolerate galactic cosmic radiation, applications extend to Earth where bioremediation of radioactive sites on Earth and protection for astronauts and spacecraft could benefit, researchers say.
- Researchers caution that the exact biochemical mechanism converting radiation to energy remains theoretical, not all melanized fungi show radiotropism, and more experiments are needed to confirm protective effects.
22 Articles
22 Articles
Testing Chernobyl fungi as a radiation shield for astronauts
A team of researchers from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and Stanford University has tested the viability of using a type of fungus found growing in some of the destroyed nuclear reactors at the former Chernobyl nuclear power plant site to shield astronauts from radiation. They have written a paper describing their work and have uploaded it to the bioRxiv preprint site.
The mysterious fungus thriving in Chernobyl’s radiation
Nearly four decades after the Chernobyl disaster, a strange black fungus is not just surviving but thriving in one of the most radioactive buildings on the face of the Earth. Its odd affair with radiation raises a question in scientists' minds as to whether life can adapt in ways we never thought possible. This article is based on verified reporting from Science Alert.
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