Turkish scientists aim to grow tomatoes on the Moon, Mars
Rector Prof. Dr. Necdet Budak (2nd right) congratulates Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rengin Ozgur Uzilday (right), Assoc. Dr. Rengin Ozgur Uzilday (right), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Baris Uzilday (left) and Dr. Tansel Kaygisiz Asciogul (2nd left).
Researchers from Türkiye’s Ege University are working on a groundbreaking project to enable plant cultivation, specifically tomato production, on the Moon and Mars as part of efforts to support sustainable food systems in future space colonies.
The project, led by Associate Professor Rengin Ozgur Uzilday from the Faculty of Science at Ege University, is supported by Türkiye’s Scientific and Technological Research Council (TUBITAK) under the “1001-Scientific and Technological Research Projects Support Program.”
Focus on regolith adaptation for agriculture
The project, titled “Improving Lunar and Martian Regolith Simulants for Agriculture Using Extremophilic Pioneer Plants and Investigating Stress-Response Signaling Pathways in Plants Grown on Regolith Simulants,” seeks to address the physical and chemical limitations of regolith—a soil-like material found on the Moon and Mars.
Associate Professor Uzilday highlighted the importance of enhancing the nutrient-poor regolith to support plant growth, with a focus on identifying molecular mechanisms that enable plants to survive and thrive in extreme conditions.
Research to unlock agricultural potential in space
The study aims to uncover key signaling pathways related to nutrient deficiencies in tomatoes grown in regolith simulants. Researchers plan to provide foundational data to improve plant cultivation in extraterrestrial environments—a first in the scientific literature.
A history of space research collaboration
Ege University Rector Prof. Dr. Necdet Budak congratulated the research team and noted that one of Associate Professor Uzilday’s earlier projects was previously carried out in space by Türkiye’s first astronaut, Alper Gezeravci.
