Team:UNIK Copenhagen/Description


Moss… In space!

Exploring beyond Earth requires technological innovations, both industrial and for sustaining life in a hostile environment. Mars is an extremely hostile environment for any organism to survive. There is very little oxygen, high levels of radiation, and dangerous substances in the soil. Astronauts could live out their lives never touching martian soil, but our ambition is much more than astronauts living in metal boxes.

We plan to use moss to transform the surface of mars to a habitable environment. Moss is the Chuck Norris of the plant kingdom. Capable of surviving extreme conditions and living off of very few nutrients, moss can even grow on the bare rock.


Red Lab and Green Lab

Red Lab
In the 'Red Lab', the team will expose the moss to harsh martian conditions, including extreme temperature differences, fake martian soil, radiation exposure, pressure and CO2 concentrations. More about Red Lab

Green Lab
In the 'Green Lab', the team will attempt to make the moss more hardy by modifying it with an 'anti-freeze' gene from a ringworm. This amazing feature works by attaching onto the ends of the ice crystals forming in the cell, slowing down the growth of the crystals. More about Green Lab

Treaty on Outer Space

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