In a step that's getting us closer to off-world farming, scientists on Germany's Neumayer Station III in Antarctica have just harvested a nice big crop of vegetables – a whole 3.6 kg (8 pounds) of salad greens, 18 cucumbers, and 70 radishes.
“諾伊邁爾三號(hào)站”是德國(guó)在南極洲開(kāi)設(shè)的科學(xué)考察站。最近,科學(xué)家在那里成功種出許多蔬菜——3.6公斤生菜、18根黃瓜、70根蘿卜。看來(lái),人類(lèi)離太空農(nóng)業(yè)又近了一步。
Even better, the crops, grown in a lab called EDEN-ISS, were produced without dirt, daylight, or pesticides, according to the team.
研究團(tuán)隊(duì)表示,這些農(nóng)作物是在“EDEN-ISS”實(shí)驗(yàn)室里種出來(lái)的,種植過(guò)程沒(méi)有使用土壤、日照、農(nóng)藥。
Instead, the researchers employed a reusable water cycle and a nutrient system, while optimising LED lighting and carefully monitoring carbon dioxide in the room - based on a method known as hydroponics.
相反,研究人員根據(jù)“水培法”,采用可重復(fù)利用的水循環(huán)系統(tǒng)和營(yíng)養(yǎng)物系統(tǒng),同時(shí)充分利用LED照明,并仔細(xì)監(jiān)控室內(nèi)的二氧化碳濃度。
"After sowing the seeds in mid-February, I had to deal with some unexpected problems, such as minor system failures and the strongest storm in more than a year," Paul Zabel, an engineer involved with the project, told dw.com.
今年二月,研究團(tuán)隊(duì)播下種子。參與該項(xiàng)目的工程師Paul Zabel表示,播種后出現(xiàn)了一些意料之外的問(wèn)題,例如:系統(tǒng)出現(xiàn)小故障、科考站遭遇一年多以來(lái)最強(qiáng)烈的暴風(fēng)雪。
"Fortunately, all these things could be fixed and overcome."
但幸運(yùn)的是,所有問(wèn)題都可以解決、可以克服。
This is only the start of the harvest, too. The German Aerospace Centre, which coordinates the project, told AP that by May the scientists are hoping to harvest a huge 4-5 kilograms (9-11 pounds) of vegetables a week.
如今,豐收才剛剛開(kāi)始。“德國(guó)航空太空中心”是該項(xiàng)目的負(fù)責(zé)方。他們表示,到了五月份,科學(xué)家預(yù)計(jì)將每周收獲4-5千克的蔬菜。
This isn't the first time researchers have attempted something like this, with the ISS growing space vegetables already back in 2015.
科學(xué)家并非首次進(jìn)行這類(lèi)研究。早在2015年,國(guó)際空間站就曾種出過(guò)太空蔬菜。
But this project is focussed on producing a wider mix, such as radishes, salad greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers (capsicum) and even herbs.
不過(guò),這個(gè)項(xiàng)目旨在種出更多種類(lèi)的蔬菜,包括蘿卜、生菜、番茄、黃瓜、辣椒、甚至草本植物。
Radishes grown in the greenhouse (DLR)All this in Antarctica, nonetheless. With temperatures outside dropping below -20 degrees Celsius (-4 degrees Fahrenheit), it's pretty amazing that the researchers are producing such a wide range of fruits and vegetables.
要知道,南極洲的室外溫度低于零下20度。在這種環(huán)境中,研究人員竟然能夠成功種出種類(lèi)豐富的蔬菜瓜果,實(shí)在是不可思議。
Now they're just waiting on some berries for dessert.
接下來(lái),他們打算種些草莓,當(dāng)作飯后點(diǎn)心。
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