MARS-FEED

MARS-FEED (Mars Food Ecosystem Engineering Design) is a multidisciplinary research initiative focused on designing an integrated food system for future long-duration human missions to Mars.

Future Mars expeditions will require astronauts to produce, process, store, and prepare food within a highly constrained habitat environment where resupply from Earth is extremely limited. MARS-FEED explores how a complete food ecosystem could function under these conditions by designing a closed-loop “farm-to-galley” architecture capable of supporting sustained human presence on the Martian surface.

The project investigates how multiple subsystems, including food production, processing, storage, preparation, waste recovery, and resource management, can be integrated into a coherent system that maintains crew nutrition while minimizing resource consumption and operational complexity.

Rather than studying individual technologies in isolation, MARS-FEED applies a systems engineering approach to model the entire lifecycle of food within a Mars habitat. The project considers the interactions between biological systems, engineering infrastructure, human factors, and environmental constraints to develop a realistic and scalable concept of operations.

The research aligns with the objectives of NASA’s Mars to Table Challenge, which calls for the development of a complete 14-sol meal plan and an integrated food production system capable of supporting a 15-person Mars surface crew. While MARS-FEED operates as an independent research initiative, the project framework follows the challenge’s design criteria and mission constraints.

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The system architecture explored in MARS-FEED includes several interconnected subsystems:

• Controlled environment food production (plants, algae, fungi, or other biological sources)

• Food processing and preservation technologies

• Food storage and inventory systems

• Meal preparation and galley design for astronaut crews

• Waste management and nutrient recovery loops

• Resource management including water, energy, and environmental control

• Nutritional planning and crew health considerations

By integrating these subsystems, the project aims to develop a concept for a self-sustaining food ecosystem capable of supporting long-duration exploration missions.

MARS-FEED is conducted as a collaborative research effort involving students, early-career engineers, and multidisciplinary experts working together through the Knowledge Angels network. Contributors participate in defined subsystem roles and produce technical outputs including engineering models, design documents, and system architecture studies.

The outcomes of the project may include:

• a submission aligned with the NASA Mars to Table Challenge

• a peer-reviewed journal publication describing the integrated system design

• subsystem research reports and engineering models

• professional portfolio outputs for participating contributors

Through this work, MARS-FEED aims to contribute to the broader challenge of designing sustainable food systems for extreme environments, both in space and on Earth.

The below MARS-FEED system architecture illustrates a closed-loop food ecosystem designed for long-duration Mars missions. The model integrates nutrition planning, food production, processing, storage, meal preparation, consumption, and waste recovery into a circular resource system that minimises resupply requirements and maximises sustainability for future Mars habitats.

This integrated approach reflects current research into Mars food systems, controlled environment agriculture, closed-loop life support, and sustainable space habitat design, highlighting how biological and engineering subsystems interact to support astronaut nutrition during extended planetary missions.