NOPALES (OPUNTIA FICUS INDICA), GROWTH SCREEN; LUNAR HIGHLANDS REGOLITH SIMULANT, VOLCANIC ROCK AND TEPHRA PETROGRAPHIC ANALYSIS STUDIES

Space exploration will always be limited by the availability of nutritionally dense food. To address this human problem, this project aims to introduce the NOPAL, Opuntia ficus-indica (abbrv. Ofi, it is commonly known as the prickly pear cactus) to the Advanced Life Support (ALS) architecture for the Artemis missions with ISS in-flight validation in PONDS. We create baseline growth screen with lunar simulant and terrestrial substrates to evaluate growth ad root development.

Opuntia f. i., is found from Ontario, Canada to Central Mexico and Australia to Africa and is widely cultivated for several commercial ventures and products. While not commercially cultivated for food in the United States, Opuntia f. i has been cultivated for food and fodder for generations by indigenous people across the American continent, particularly in Mexico.

Geologically, Popocatépetl is part of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, which is a volcanic chain that extends across Mexico from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico The volcano, “El Popo” has been active throughout history, and it remains active to this day. Eruptions can range from mild to explosive. This continuous availability of volcanic tephra was collected in May 2023 to evaluate against known Apollo lunar regolith missions to better understand how the nopal thrives here on Earth.

From this ancient wisdom, we discuss the nutritional benefits of the Nopal and conduct a substrate and variety factorial screen for Opuntia to observe root development and biomass accumulation in Lunar Regolith Simulants, and in terrestrial volcanic rock substrates. Tephra petrographic analysis studies are also conducted to analyze and evaluate against the known compositions of the Apollo lunar samples.