If the idea of lunar hummus seems far-fetched, think again. Scientists working to cultivate the field of extraterrestrial agriculture have grown chickpeas in dirt made mostly of simulated lunar soil, a step toward enabling astronauts on ‌long-term moon missions to produce their own food.

Researchers said harvestable chickpeas were grown in soil mixtures composed primarily of “moon dirt” modelled after lunar samples retrieved during NASA’s Apollo missions more than half a century ago.

Chickpeas of a variety called “Myles” were raised in a climate-controlled growth chamber at Texas A&M University. Seeds were coated with beneficial fungi and planted in a mix of the simulated lunar soil, made by Florida-based company Space Resource Technologies, and a nutrient-rich substance called vermicompost produced when earthworms break down ‌organic waste.

Harvestable chickpeas grew in soil mixtures of up to 75% lunar simulant. As the percentage of simulated moon soil — known as regolith — increased, the number of harvestable chickpeas decreased, though the size of the chickpeas ‌remained stable. Seeds planted in 100% lunar simulant failed to produce flowers and seeds, experiencing early death.

The United States and ‌China have plans to send astronauts back to the lunar surface in the coming years, with an eye toward long-term bases on the moon.

“Chickpeas are high in protein and other essential nutrients, making them a strong candidate for space crop production,” said Jessica Atkin, a doctoral candidate and NASA fellow at Texas A&M’s Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, lead author of the research published on Thursday (March 5, 2026) in the journal Scientific Reports.

A local food source is considered vital to sustaining ‌people staffing moon bases because of the impracticality of transporting all needed food from Earth.

“In our goal toward establishing a lunar presence — or one on Mars — we will need to learn how to grow food on the moon, since it will not be sustainable to ship food in spaceships. This is because it is still quite expensive to ship things ‌to space, so weight is a factor, and also because the survival of astronauts on the moon can’t be ​dependent on the timely shipment of supplies,” said study co-author Sara Oliveira Santos, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics.

“Plants would also help produce oxygen and enhance life-support systems for future ⁠human settlements,” said astrobiologist Jyothi Basapathi Raghavendra of Northumbria University in England, lead author of a second study published on Thursday (March 5, 2026) that examined growing conditions for microbes in simulated Martian soil.

Moon soil is basically crushed rock and dust, often sharp and glass-like, formed over billions of ‌years by meteorite impacts. While it contains essential nutrients and minerals for plants to grow, it is inorganic and inhospitable, unlike the nutrient-rich and organic Earth soil.

“Previous studies have shown plants can germinate in authentic lunar samples or grow in regolith simulants, often by adding compost or other types of organic matter,” Ms. Atkin said. “In this study, we focused on microorganisms. Instead of only adding organic material, we tested whether plant-microbe partnerships could help condition regolith, improve its structure and reduce plant stress.”

How do they taste?

So what did these chickpeas taste like? We do not know yet.

“The chickpeas are currently being tested for metal accumulation, which is why ‌we haven’t eaten them just yet,” Ms. Atkin said.

Lunar regolith and the simulant used by the researchers contain high levels of metals such as aluminum and iron. Iron is an essential nutrient for plants. Aluminum is not, and can be toxic when consumed.

“Before anyone makes moon hummus, we need to confirm they are safe and nutritious. Those results will be published in a follow-up paper later this year,” Ms. Atkin said.

The fungi used to coat the seeds worked symbiotically with the chickpeas, helping the ⁠plants absorb some essential nutrients while reducing their uptake of heavy metals. The microorganisms successfully colonised roots even in 100% regolith simulant and helped bind loose particles, making regolith behave more like Earth soil.

The researchers had some fun in ‌the laboratory. Ms. Atkin played lunar-themed songs such as Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Bad Moon Rising” to encourage the plants. Ms. Atkin also hung a picture of chickpeas growing on the moon.

“Kind of silly, but something to aim for,” Ms. Atkin said.

“This is a small first step toward growing crops on the moon,” Oliveira Santos said, “but we have shown this is feasible and we are moving in the right direction.”

Published – March 10, 2026 12:01 pm IST

This file computer-generated image released by the European Space Agency (ESA) on April 15, 2008 shows trackable objects in orbit around Earth. – The United States said November 8, 2021 it was investigating a “debris-generating event in outer space” after astronauts on the International Space Station were forced to prepare for a possible evacuation.
| Photo Credit: AFP

There’s a lot of trash on the Moon right now – including nearly 100 bags of human waste – and with countries around the globe traveling to the Moon, there’s going to be a lot more, both on the lunar surface and in Earth’s orbit.

In August 2023, Russia’s Luna-25 probe crashed into the Moon’s surface, while India’s Chandrayann-3 mission successfully landed in the southern polar region, making India the fourth country to land on the Moon.

With more countries landing on the Moon, people back on Earth will have to think about what happens to all the landers, waste and miscellaneous debris left on the lunar surface and in orbit.

I’m a professor of astronomy who has written a book about the future of space travel, articles about our future off-Earth, conflict in space, space congestion and the ethics of space exploration. Like many other space experts, I’m concerned about the lack of governance around space debris.

Data | Small debris orbiting Earth pose threats to space assets 

Space is getting crowded

People think of space as vast and empty, but the near-Earth environment is starting to get crowded. As many as 100 lunar missions are planned over the next decade by governments and private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin.

Near-Earth orbit is even more congested than the space between Earth and the Moon. It’s from 100 to 500 miles straight up, compared with 240,000 miles to the Moon. Currently there are nearly 7,700 satellites within a few hundred miles of the Earth. That number could grow to several hundred thousand by 2027. Many of these satellites will be used to deliver internet to developing countries or to monitor agriculture and climate on Earth. Companies like SpaceX have dramatically lowered launch costs, driving this wave of activity.

“It’s going to be like an interstate highway, at rush hour in a snowstorm, with everyone driving much too fast,” space launch expert Johnathan McDowell told Space.com.

The problem of space junk

All this activity creates hazards and debris. Humans have left a lot of junk on the Moon, including spacecraft remains like rocket boosters from over 50 crashed landings, nearly 100 bags of human waste and miscellaneous objects like a feather, golf balls and boots. It adds up to around 200 tons of our trash.

Also Read | India has 217 space objects orbiting earth; working towards reducing space debris: Report

Since no one owns the Moon, no one is responsible for keeping it clean and tidy.

The clutter in Earth’s orbit includes defunct spacecraft, spent rocket boosters and items discarded by astronauts such as a glove, a wrench and a toothbrush. It also includes tiny pieces of debris like paint flecks.

There are around 23,000 objects larger than 10 cm (4 inches) and about 100 million pieces of debris larger than 1 mm (0.04 inches). Tiny pieces of junk might not seem like a big issue, but that debris is moving at 15,000 mph (24,140 kph), 10 times faster than a bullet. At that speed, even a fleck of paint can puncture a spacesuit or destroy a sensitive piece of electronics.

In 1978, NASA scientist Donald Kessler described a scenario where collisions between orbiting pieces of debris create more debris, and the amount of debris grows exponentially, potentially rendering near-Earth orbit unusable. Experts call this the “Kessler syndrome.”

Nobody is in charge up there

The United Nations Outer Space Treaty of 1967 says that no country can “own” the Moon or any part of it, and that celestial bodies should only be used for peaceful purposes. But the treaty is mute about companies and individuals, and it says nothing about how space resources can and can’t be used.

The United Nations Moon Agreement of 1979 held that the Moon and its natural resources are the common heritage of humanity. However, the United States, Russia and China never signed it, and in 2016 the U.S. Congress created a law that unleashed the American commercial space industry with very few restrictions.

Because of its lack of regulation, space junk is an example of a “tragedy of the commons,” where many interests have access to a common resource, and it may become depleted and unusable to everyone, because no interest can stop another from overexploiting the resource.

Scientists argue that to avoid a tragedy of the commons, the orbital space environment should be seen as a global commons worthy of protection by the United Nations. The lead author of a Nature article arguing for a global commons filed an amicus brief – a type of outside comment offering support or expertise – on a case that went to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in late 2021.

Explained | The need for space sustainability 

The author and his research collaborators argued that U.S. environmental regulations should apply to the licensing of space launches. However, the court declined to rule on the environmental issue because it said the group lacked standing.

National geopolitical and commercial interests will likely take precedence over interplanetary conservation efforts unless the United Nations acts. A new treaty may emerge from the work of the U.N. Office for Outer Space Affairs, which in May 2023 generated a policy document to address the sustainable development of activities in space.

The U.N. can regulate the activities of only its member states, but it has a project to help member states craft national-level policies that advance the goals of sustainable development.

NASA has created and signed the Artemis Accords, broad but nonbinding principles for cooperating peacefully in space. They have been signed by 28 countries, but the list does not include China or Russia. Private companies are not party to the accords either, and some space entrepreneurs have deep pockets and big ambitions.

The lack of regulation and the current gold rush approach to space exploration mean that space junk and waste will continue to accumulate, as will the related problems and dangers.

Representational image of a launch from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, in Sriharikota
| Photo Credit: PTI

A mission to study the Sun, and launching a climate observation satellite, a test vehicle as part of Gaganyaan human space flight programme and an Indo-US synthetic aperture radar — ISRO has a packed schedule following the highly anticipated landing of Chandrayaan-3 Lander.

In addition, XPoSat (X-ray Polarimeter Satellite), the country’s first dedicated polarimetry mission to study various dynamics of bright astronomical X-ray sources in extreme conditions, is also ready for launch, an ISRO official said on Tuesday.

Aditya-L1, the first space-based Indian observatory to study the Sun, is getting ready for the launch, most likely in September first week.

According to ISRO Chairman, Somanath S, the space agency has also lined up the launch of a climate observation satellite INSAT-3DS.

The launch of a test vehicle mission, for the validation of the crew escape system for Gaganyaan, the country’s maiden human space flight mission, is also expected soon.

NISAR

“(Then) we have to launch NISAR, the India-U.S. built Synthetic Aperture Radar,” Mr. Somanath said in his independence day address at ISRO headquarters here on August 15. “So, our hands are full.”

“We are going to build a large number of satellites for our security purpose as well in the coming days,” Mr. Somanath had said.

According to ISRO officials, NASA-ISRO SAR (NISAR) is a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) observatory being jointly developed by U.S. space agency NASA and ISRO.

NISAR will map the entire globe in 12 days and provide spatially and temporally consistent data for understanding changes in Earth’s ecosystems, ice mass, vegetation biomass, sea level rise, ground water and natural hazards including earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and landslides, they said.

“It carries L and S dual band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), which operates with Sweep SAR technique to achieve large swath with high resolution data. The SAR payloads mounted on Integrated Radar Instrument Structure (IRIS) and the spacecraft bus are together called an observatory”, an ISRO official noted.

Unmanned missions ahead of Gaganyaan

Before undertaking the Gaganyaan human space (manned) flight mission, ISRO has planned two unmanned missions.

“We are getting ready for the (first of the two) unmanned crew module mission by the beginning of next year”, an ISRO official said.

The objective of the Gaganyaan mission is to demonstrate the capability of conducting human space flight mission to LEO on-board Indian Launch vehicle. The Orbital module consists of a Crew module and a Service module.

Crew module, which is a pressurised module, acts as living quarters for the crew. The orbital module will be positioned in approximately 400 km circular orbit around earth for one to 3 days and the crew module will return at the designated location at sea.