THE EDEN ISS FACILITY AS PLATFORM FOR PLANTS

EXPERIMENTS IN EXTREME ENVIRONMENTS

Antonio Ceriello1*, Raimondo Fortezza1,Domenico De Simone1,
Daniel Schubert2, Paul Zabel2, Conrad Zeidler2, Vincent Vrakking2
1
Telespazio S.p.A., Via Louis Bleriot 82, 80144 Napoli, Italy
2
German Aerospace Center (DLR) Robert-Hooke-Straße 7, 28359 Bremen, Germany
[email protected]; [email protected](*corresponding author)
[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]
[email protected]; [email protected]

ABSTRACT
EDEN ISS is a H2020 project aimed at testing key technologies for plant cultivation in large-
scale closed environments for a future implementation in space habitats. In this light, a Future
Exploration Greenhouse has been designed, developed and deployed at the highly isolated
German Neumayer III Antarctic Station to simulate the harsh conditions of an extra planetary
outpost mission and test a typical space operations scenario. The greenhouse has been
equipped with all the systems to control the environmental parameters (temperature, relative
humidity, light intensity, etc.), and to accommodate and feed the plants during their lifecycle.
A camera system has been implemented for plant status assessment via remote image analysis.
A command and data handling system provides the capability to configure the experimental set
points via software, and can be controlled by remote operators. A Mission Control Centre has
been realized at DLR for remote monitoring and control of the facility. The MCC receives all
the telemetry and the images and can make them available to other centres, which have been
included in the operations loop to provide expert support to the on-site operator. This paper
describes the facility and its capabilities as platform for fresh food production experiments in
an extreme environment. It is an extended version of a paper presented at the AIDAA Congress
2019, in the Technical Session “Red Planet Exploration.

Keywords: Space Greenhouse, Plant cultivation, Extreme Environment, Bio-Regenerative

Closed Loop Environmental Systems

LIST OF ACRONYMS
AMS Atmosphere Management System
AWI Alfred Wegener Institute
BLSS Biorigenerative Life Support System
CDHS Command and Data Handling System
CNR Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (National Research Council)
EC Electrical Conductivity
EDR European Drawer Rack
FEG Future Exploration Greenhouse
HD High Definition
HW Hardware
ISPR International Standard Payload Rack
ISS International Space Station
LIT Limerick Institute of Technology
MCC Mission Control Center
MTF Mobile Test Facility
The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

NDS Nutrient Delivery System

NM III Neumayer III
PCDS Power Control and Distribution System
PHM Plant Health Monitoring
ppm part per million
RH Relative Humidity
SS Service Section
S/W Software
TCS Thermal Control System
VOCs Volatile Organic Compounds
UHB User Home Base
UoF University of Florida
UoG University of Guelph
WUR Wageningen University and Research

INTRODUCTION
Future space exploration and long duration missions strongly depend on the capability of the
astronauts to produce (part of) the resources needed for their survival on extra-terrestrial
outposts. In fact, the mission success cannot rely only on resupply missions that, on one hand
are very expensive and require long shipment time, and, on the other hand, could have
catastrophic effects in case of failure in the resupply chain. In this light, the capability to grow
plants at the mission sites represents a way to overcome several problems and to ensure
complementary fresh food. A greenhouse for the cultivation of higher plants can be part of a
closed-loop system, named BLSS (Biorigenerative Life Support System), that is aimed at the
production of oxygen, water and food while processing the human waste (CO2, urine and
faeces). But plant cultivation, in environments that are completely different from those on the
Earth, poses several challenges and requires the use of several key technologies that are not yet
space qualified or not yet in a mature stage. Several experiments have been conducted on space
platforms since the beginning of the human space exploration with the objective to understand
the effects of the space environment on plant growth and address the technological challenge
to grow plant in closed environment. Small size facilities[1] have been uploaded and operated
on board since the first mission of the Russian Salyut in the 70s, and still today several
experiments are conducted by the astronauts on board of the ISS. Nevertheless, despite all the
scientific and technical success, we can neither say that we are able to produce a significant
amount of vegetables on board of a space station as complementary food for the astronauts, nor
that a BLSS system has reached the needed technical maturity for space applications. To reach
this goal, and looking at future deployment of permanent basis on extra-terrestrial outposts, it
is necessary to move from experiments on plant growth to large scale fresh food production
using entire compartments of a spaceship[2] during long term missions and/or ad-hoc modules
of a Lunar or Martian base. However, this approach first needs to be tested on Earth and ISS in
order to prove its reliability and applicability to future missions.

On that regards, several research groups[3] are involved in BLSS projects under funding and/or
coordination of the major space agencies or other national or international entities, bringing
together both scientific and technical competencies necessary to fulfil the ambitious objective
to build a system that, as matter of fact, should replicate the natural processes of resources
regeneration.

In this frame, a multi-disciplinary team, composed of 14 partners from eight countries, led by
DLR - Institute for Space Systems and under funding of European Union, designed and realized

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

a greenhouse, called EDEN ISS Mobile Test Facility (MTF), with the main research objective
to test and validate plant growth technologies in closed environments as preparatory step for
the realization of future habitats on the Moon and Mars. Oher important objectives of the
mission are to test the operative scenario as well as the associated production process and
procedures, and to assess the quality and safety of the produced food.

Following a long design and realization period, on January 2018 the MTF has been deployed
at the highly isolated German Neumayer III (NM-III) Antarctica Station. Here the greenhouse
is operated by the onsite crew with the support of a Mission Control Center (MCC) in Bremen,
which is connected to the greenhouse via a direct satellite link and can remotely monitor and
control all the MTF equipment.

After the arrival at the NM-III site and a commissioning phase[4] aimed at the on-site setup and
functionalities test, the first operations phase took place from February until November of 2018
providing the evidence of the efficacy of the selected solution, producing samples for scientific
investigation and even fresh food for crew. A second phase started after a refurbishment in
December 2019. Presently the greenhouse is still at NM-III and will remain in the Antarctic at
least until the end of 2020 to carry out further experiments and collect additional data.

The reason behind the selection of an Antarctic location stands not only on the possibility to
take advantage of several lesson learned coming from similar projects[5], but expecially on its
similarities with an extra-terrestrial outpost in terms of limitation of resources, limited access
possibilities and extreme environmental conditions.
In fact, the NM-III base is permanently manned, but for the most part of the time (the
overwintering time, lasting 9/10 months) with a crew of 9 persons, that is comparable with a
number of astronauts foreseen in a mission to Mars. Also, the duration of the permanence in
the base before to be replaced by another team (9/10 months) is comparable to that on a base
on the Moon and/or Mars (could be 8 months considering that a mission to Mars should last at
around 24 months, with 16 months needed for the travel from the Earth to Mars and viceversa).
The survivability possibilities at the NM-III depends from the technical robustness and
reliability of the infrastructure with respect the huge environmental conditions, with very low
temperature (that in winter can fall down to -50degC), strong winds (wind speed can surpasses
100 Km/h) and snowstorms. It also depends on the resupply missions and on the capability of
the crewmember to solve problems. Similarly to a space mission, if something goes wrong, the
crewmembers are the prime in anomalies handling and shall be able to solve the problem with
or without the support of the experts from ground, even if that is ensured at the maximum extent

For all these reasons, the NM-III has been considered as a valid analog test site, allowing to test
the technical solution selected for the EDEN ISS design, but also the operability of such a
facility in a space-like scenario, advancing the readiness of hardware and operational protocols
for use in space-based systems, such as in orbit/transit or on the surface of the Moon and Mars.

PAPER OBJECTIVE AND STRUCTURE

This paper has the objective to briefly describe the facility and to introduce at its operative
concepts. In particular,
Section 1 describes the EDEN ISS facility, providing an overview of the main compartments
and the layout and the capabilities of each of them.
Section 2 provides some more details on the MTF subsystems and in particular on their
capabilities and performances.

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

Section 3 is aimed at the description of the operative concept, and in particular describes how
the so-called decentralised approach has been implemented, with the introduction of all the
entities involved in the project and their roles and responsibilities in the EDEN ISS
experimental phase and operations.
Section 4 provides a brief description of the procedures used to execute the daily activities
within the MTF. The have been designed and implemented following one single standard for
both the technical, agronomic and scientific operations, miming the procedures used for the
operations on board of the International Space Stations.
Section 5 provides some concluding remarks.

1 THE MOBILE TEST FACILITY LAYOUT

The MTF consists of two standard 20 foot shipping containers, which are fixed together and
placed on top of an external platform (Figure 1) located 400 m south of NM-III.

Figure 1 : The EDEN ISS Mobile Test Facility (credit DLR)

Figure 2 : The three main area’s of the MTF (credit EDEN ISS consortium, rendering LSG 2016)

Three main areas are identified in the MTF as shown in Figure 2. Two of them are
accommodated in the first container named Service Section Container[6]. They are:

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

 The Cold porch/airlock, i.e. a small room providing storage and a small climate buffer
between the external environment and the greenhouse internal volume. The Cold Porch
allows for crew preparation before entering into the Service Section, as for example
taking off the polar suit, collecting the necessary tools, etc. Finally, it also houses the
water tanks beneath the floor (for both fresh and waste water)
 The Service Section (SS), i.e. the main working room that houses all the EDEN ISS
subsystems and the computers to control them (Figure 3 and Figure 4). In particular the:
o Atmosphere Management System (AMS)
o Thermal Control System (TCS)
o Nutrient Delivery System (NDS)
o Power Control and Distribution System (PCDS)
o Command and Data Handling System , (CDHS)
A general operator workspace is available for pre- and post-harvesting activities,
including a workbench, a sink, a tool storage area, as well as the computers for the MTF
management and control.

Figure 3 : Service Section Container cut view – South side (credit DLR)

Figure 4 : Service Section Container cut view – North side (credit DLR)

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

The Errore. L'origine riferimento non è stata trovata. also shows a subsystem not mentioned
in the above list. It is the ISPR demonstrator rack i.e. a small-scale greenhouse implemented to
test key technologies to be implemented on bard of the ISS. For that reason the ISPR
demonstrator has been designed to mimic full-rack form factor ISS International standard
payload racks (ISPR), with the objective to deploy the key part of it as payload in the ISS
European Drawer Rack (EDR) II. It is a self-standing facility, requiring power and
communication resources, that has been hosted in the MTF for the first operation cycle. After
that, it has been dismounted and brought back to Europe for further development activities. For
that reason, it will be not further described in this paper.

The Future Exploration Greenhouse (FEG)[6] is accommodated in the second container and
is the MTF compartment devoted to plants cultivation. It is equipped with multi-level rack
structures on both sides of the container (Figure 5), spanning its entire length, where plants are
grown under LED light and are irrigated in a combination aeroponic-nutrient film technique
type system. A camera system is integrated in the growth system as Plant Health Monitoring
system providing the capability to acquire both top view and lateral images.

Figure 5 : Overview of plant growth unit elements and topology of FEG plant grow racks (credit DLR)

Table 1 : Controllable environmental parameter depending on plant growth unit element within the FEG.

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

The FEG provides the capability to control the environmental parameters for plant growth. The
above Table 1 shows the different level of controls.

The total internal length of the MTF is 11.8 m, of which 5.7 m are reserved for the FEG, 5.7 m
are also reserved for the Service Section and the Cold Porch and the remaining 0.4 m is space
between the two sections, which is needed for interfaces, such as ducting, piping and cabling.
The door separating the Service Section and FEG is of transparent construction to better permit
NM-III crewmembers to remain outside FEG while still observing the plants. Three other doors
are present in the structure, one is separating the Cold Porch from the Service Sections the other
two are respectively the nominal (on the Cold Porch side) and emergency exit door (on the FRG
side). One big window is placed on one side of the Service Section allowing an external view
toward the NMII base.

The MTF utilizes power generated by NM-III and provided via a heavy gauge electrical cable
buried under the snow/ice. In addition, there is a direct hard-line connection between the station
and the MTF as primary communication line. However, on the roof of the Service Section is
mounted an external patch antenna, which provides redundancy for the communication between
the MTF and the NM-III station.

The operator and other crewmembers accessing the MTF for the most part travel on foot from
the NM-III to the MTF. In support of that, the handrail running south from the station have been
extended in the direction of the MTF and can be used in instances of inclement weather. NM-
III skidoos and sleds can also be used for the transport of larger materials or fresh/waste water
to and from the facility.

Finally, in support of the nominal experiment phase, a dedicated laboratory (multi-purpose lab)
is available at the NM-III station and is equipped with tools for microbial investigations, food
quality and safety measurements and general equipment for post-harvest analysis. The lab is
also used for sample preparation and stabilization for further analysis to be done at the remote
support sites in Europe. All samples (food quality- and safety related as well as microbial
samples) are stored in a mobile freezer at -40°C prior to, and during transport.

2 SUBSYSTEMS DESCRIPTION
Several functionalities are required for the proper management of the EDEN ISS MTF
operations to ensure successful plant cultivation, such as the provision of nutrients or the correct
light conditions and maintaining the correct environmental conditions with respect the extreme
external conditions. A brief description of the subsystems providing these functions is provided
below.

Plant Cultivation System. As seen in Section1, the FEG houses eight distinct plant growth
racks (four for each side of the corridor) designed and developed by DLR, holding 42 plant
growth trays (Errore. L'origine riferimento non è stata trovata.) and providing
approximately 12.5 m2 of growing space. Each rack can accommodate from one to four shelves
providing different growth space height (52 cm, 104 cm and 204 cm) and therefore allowing
the cultivation of different species (from lettuce to cucumbers). In particular one rack is
configured for tall plant growth like cucumbers, 4 racks are configured to grow medium height
plants like tomatoes, two racks are configured to grow short plants like lettuce. One rack is used
also used as plant nursery. In such a rack, three separate seed germination units are dedicated
to plant germination before the juvenile plants are transplanted to the growth trays.

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

Figure 6 : FEG inner, with racks and trays (credit DLR)

Figure 7 : Crop customized boxes lids (credit DLR)

The plant growth trays have been realized using commercial off the shelf 60 cm x 40 cm
polypropylene boxes modified to incorporate aeroponic tubing (spray) and with crop-
customized lids (Figure 7) having the objective to separate the root zone and shoot zone of the
plant, and to optimize plant spacing to the maximum extent possible. Two boxes can be
accommodated on each rack level, each one under a single LED lamp Unit.
A selection of the plants to be cultivated at the Antarctica site has been done before the start of
the operations with experiment aimed at identify the crops compatible with the growth
environment made possible by the FEG capabilities. The analysis and experiment resulted in
the following selection (Table 2):

Table 2 : Plants Selected for the first operations cycle

Fruit Plants Leaf Plants Herbs

Cucumber Lettuce (4 varieties) Chives
Dwarf tomato Spinach Parsley
Tomato Swiss chard Coriander
Bell pepper Red mustard Basil
Strawberry Rucola Mint
Radish Mizuna

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

Nutrient Delivery System (NDS). Plant cultivation in the MTF is based on a soilless approach,
with irrigation provided using aeroponic technology. Roots are exposed to air and continuously
misted with nutrient solution sprayed by means of diffusers. The nutrient solution, composed
of water enriched nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, and 11 other mineral elements, is contained
in two 250 liters tanks hosted in the main NDS module located in the Service Section (Figure
8 – left). These tanks are equipped with pumps for solution stirring and delivery, and sensors
for controlling the solution composition and state. In particular, the sensors provide the
capability to continuously monitor the pH, the electrical conductivity, the dissolved oxygen, the
ion-selective concentrations, the temperature of the solution, and finally the solution level
inside the tanks. Both tanks have redundant sensors to ensure system reliability. Each nutrient
tank is operated independently and can have different nutrient solution compositions that
depend on the experiment and plant requirements. For that reason, the two nutrient tanks have
two separate stock supply tanks that allow an independent and different feeding of them.
However, both tanks are supplied from the same acid and base reservoirs for pH control.

Figure 8 : The NDS System

The nutrient solution is provided to the plants via a distribution system placed beneath the FEG
floor (Figure 8 – right). Any rack is served by a high-pressure pump that can provide nutrient
solution to all the trays of the rack. Any rack can be feeded independently with one or the other
nutrient solution according the plant needs. The selection of one or the other nutrient solution
is done configuring a three way valve placed on the nutrient delivery line for each rack. The
three ways valve are accessible via removable floor panels. However solution composition is
defined at the beginning and should not change frequently, therefore the access to the valves
should not occur frequently.

Illuminations System (ILS). LED technology is used to provide lights to the plants and to
emulate the spectral range that activates the photosynthesis process A water-cooled LED lamps
has been designed and developed ad-hoc for the EDEN ISS using 450, 660 and 735 nm LEDs
along with a broadband white 5700K LED resulting in:

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

• 15% blue (400-500 nm)

• 10% green (500-600 nm)
• 75% red (600-700 nm)
• 2% far-red (700-750 nm)

The lamps come with a

power supply of 120 or
240 W, in order to provide
a target light intensity of
300 or 600 µmol m-2 s-1.
600 W is the maximum
power demand. Each lamp
Unit is assembled as an
aluminium box having
dimension of 210 x 372 x
86 mm, fastened to the
plant cultivation rack
Figure 9 : The Illumination System
above each plant growth
tray, and can be configured independently from the others, in terms of both spectral composition
and light intensity. The lamps can works in automatic way once the lighting schedule is defined
and implemented via control SW or can be controlled and tuned remotely. Different lighting
schedules can be defined depending on the plants needs and their growth stage. For example, a
day/night cycle can be implemented with the possibility to gradually increase/decrease the light
intensity at the beginning/end of the day.
42 LED lamps are installed in the FEG, with a dedicated lamp for each tray. The cucumber
compartment (rack R3) has 3 additional horizontal LED bars to provide additional light during
the different phases of the growth cycle.

Air Management System (AMS). The Air Management System is aimed at controlling the
FEG ambient Parameters. It is a system quite complex since whose design is based on crop
needs.

Figure 10 : layout of the FEG Air Management System

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

The above Figure 10 shows the layout and the main components of the Air Management System
and gives a clear picture on how the air is coming to the AMS from the FEG (via one single
suction duct placed above the door of the Service Section), how it is recirculated inside its main
components, and finally how it is delivered to the FEG. In particular, the air is delivered via
four channels placed on the lateral wall of the FEG with two louvers for each rack level.

Tabella 3 : Environmental Parameter Control Set Point for the FEG

Parameter Photoperiod Dark period

Temp. (degC) 21 19
RH (%) 75 85

The Air Management System regulates the atmospheric parameters in the FEG within the range.
as reported in Tabella 3. During the circulation in its components, the AMS has also the
capability to filter and clean the air by eliminating the so-called Volatile Organic Compounds
(VOCs) and dirt that can be generated during the plant cultivation cycle. The filtering also
serves to recover the water generated by plant transpiration.
Contrary to the lighting conditions, it is not possible to differentiate growth conditions per rack,
i.e. the environmental control is done for the entire FEG.
Control over the carbon dioxide is limited to the option to inject CO2 when needed and to
maintain the nominal values at 750 ppm, as no removal system has been implemented. CO2 is
injected from CO2 cylinders placed outside of the MTF and connected to the MTF by means of
a piping system with controllable valves that are commanded to open when the CO2 falls below
the nominal value.

The AMS does not manage the environmental control of the Service Section and of the Cold
Porch, but in any case there is a control of the ambient parameters also in this sections, even if
with a decreasing level of complexity.

The system for Service Section is based on air exchange with the external environment to ensure
that the environmental parameters are maintained at their defined values that, for the Service
Section, are 21 deg C during the day, 18 deg C during the night for the temperature and 25-30%
for the Relative Humidity. These values may be exceeded because the heat generated by the
lamps and by all the other subsystems that are located in this area, or when the external
temperature fall down, as for example during the night or during the winter.
The cooling system is based on air circulation loop with fan, heaters and filters that are activated
as soon as the temperature exceeds the threshold value. When that happen, the system starts to
pump inside external air that is heated at the entrance at 5degC while pumping out the internal
air after filtering it. An internal fan is also activated for air mixing and recirculation. The system
stops when the air reached the desired temperature setpoint. Following that, the humidifier are
activated and will run until the relative humidity sensor indicates the nominal setpoint for
Relative Humidity has been reached
On the contrary, the heating system is based on additional heaters that are activated in case the
internal temperature falls below a lower threshold

The Cold Porch Temperature and relative Humidity are not actively controlled, aside from a
heater which maintains the temperature above a minimum setpoint.

Thermal Control System (TCS). The thermal control system is aimed at the provision of
chilled water to the cooling systems of the Air Management System and the LED lamps, and to
the ISPR Rack, in order to dissipate the heat they generate during operations.

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

It is composed of two internal cooling loops for heat collection and one external loop for heat
dissipation to the Antarctica Environment. The first internal loop is interfacing the AMS
system, the second the LED Panels and the ISPR Rack as shown in the following table:

Cooling Loop 1: AMS Cooling loop 2: ISPR & LEDs

 6.6 kW heat load  4.3 kW heat load (1.3/3.0 kW)

 1.1 m³/h max. volume flow  0.63 m³/h max. volume flow
 8°C inlet temperature  20°C inlet temperature
 15.2°C return temperature  25.9°C return temperature

Figure 11 : The MTF with the chiller on the MTF roof

The cooling process is based on the following steps:

1. The coolant fluid of the cooling internal loop (water-Tyfocor mixture) collect the heat
generated by the AMS, LED panels and the ISPR Rack
2. The collected heat is transported to the a liquid-liquid heat exchanger
3. Within the heat exchanger the heat is transferred from the internal loop to the liquid of the
external loop (water-Tyfoxit mixture - capable of withstanding the harsh external conditions)
4. The heat is ultimately rejected to the external environment via a heat exchanger placed on
the MTF roof

Plant Health Monitoring (PHM) System

One of the key points of the FEG performance monitoring is the plant health monitoring[8]
aimed at the the early detection of plant disease and the subsequent activation of corrective
actions. For that reason, an imaging system has been implemented with the objective to use HD
images for analysis by a knowledge system (either local or remote) to assess plant status and
eventually advise prophylactic measures to the local operator.
32 HD HIKVISION DS-2CD2542F-I cameras are integrated in the growth system as Plant
Health Monitoring system, providing the capability to acquire both top view and lateral images.
In particular the imaging System of the FEG is composed of several elements.

 17 visual HD cameras, mounted on the ceiling of each rack level (with the exclusion of the
nursery), pointing downward towards two trays for top view imaging

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

 7 visual HD cameras mounted on the ceiling of the first to the third levels of the nursery
rack, two per level/one for each tray (for the upper level, one camera is used for the whole
level), pointing downward towards the trays, for top view imaging.
 8 visual HD cameras, two for each rack, mounted along the corridor, on the rack structure
pointing at the opposite rack for lateral view imaging (see Figure 5).
 System to connect the cameras to the EDEN ISS local area network.
 Software application for daily image acquisition, local storage, and forwarding to the
European sites.

HD Plant images are periodically taken by both camera systems and delivered to the experts
for plant health and growth status assessment. The analysis is done via dedicated SW able to
measure the number of green pixels present in each image and provide warnings when this
number decrease from one day to another day indicating a potential problem, and triggering
experts analysis. Harvest time can also be predicted using this algorithm.

Figure 12 : The Plant Health Monitoring System, with the two camera’s tipology (A), a nearIR image (B)
and HD image (C)

Additionally, 6 GoPro HD cameras with special filters have been integrated in the greenhouse
for spectral imaging, with the objective to test the use of approaches such as Normalized
Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) in the evaluation and monitoring of plant health. Such
methodology is used in satellite based monitoring of terrestrial vegetation and is based on the
acquisition of near infrared images to assess the spectral reflectance properties of plant tissues
when stimulated by the sunlight as a measure of relative plant health in terrestrial habitats and
landscapes.
However, the use of NDVI and NDVI-like imagery is rapidly evolving toward other
applications, like the use of mounted cameras within indoor growing facilities. The EDEN ISS
Antarctica project then provided a case study on the practical use of specific wavelength
imagery to monitor plant health within space exploration environments, with the final objective
to define a reliable system in view of future deployment of greenhouses on extraterrestrial
outposts. During the first year of the EDEN ISS operations, images were acquired on site,
analyzed remotely, and archived for the entire duration of the deployment through a

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

combination of back-room science activities and operational communications with the

Neumayer Station III. The results[9] provided insights into the potential use of specific imaging
wavelengths to enhance crop production in space exploration.

Power Control and Distribution System (PCDS)

A power and distribution system will distribute the power provided by NMIII to all the MTF
subsystem and has the capability to withstand the maximum power demand of around 44.6 kW
as shown in table Table 2, and additional 2 kW for the non-permanently installed equipment.
However the average power demand of the MTF calculated over one year is around 11.5 kW
with a different power demand during the imposed day-night cycle.

Susbsystem Installed Power

General 4.0 kW
CHDS 1.0 kW
Ops and Comm 1,8 kW
AMS 7.0 kW
NDS 1.5 kW
TCS 3.0 kW
ILS 25.4 kW
ISPR 0.9 kW
Total 44.6 kW

Figure 13 : Part of the Power Control and

The main power box is the heart of the MTF. Distribution System main panel
It splits the incoming three-phase line from
Neumayer into separate lines for the different subsystems and components. The primary cable
channels are attached to the ceiling of the MTF and run along the walls of the service section
and in the corridor of the FEG. In addition to the primary channels under the ceiling there are
also secondary channels which run vertically at strategic points to direct cables to equipment
located e.g. within the different level of the FEG. Most of the power cables are for 230 VAC
even if there are also a number of components running at 24 VDC. Both cables typology are
certified for wet rooms. A backup power supply (or uninterruptable power supply (UPS)) has
been implemented within the MTF with the objective to overcome potential power shortages
and voltage fluctuations and to avoid the uncontrolled shutdown of the command and data
handling system and the communication between the MTF and Neumayer. An EATON
Evolution S 1750 UPS with an additional extension battery has been implemented with a
capacity to run at 70 % of the maximum load for 36 minutes.

Command &Data Handling (CDHS) System

The command and data handling system (CDHS) is responsible for in-situ data acquisition and
control within the Mobile Test Facility (MTF), for managing all MTF data (sensor, imaging)
and for ensuring storage and remote access/control of the MTF from the Neumayer Station III
(NM-III) and from User Home Bases (UHBs) located at EDEN ISS project partner premises.

The command and data handling system of the MTF is subdivided into:
• Subsystems control and monitoring system,
• Camera control system

The EDEN ISS MTF is based on the commercial ARGUS system that provides the capability
to monitor the status of the MTF subsystems via telemetry and interact with them via commands

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

using user-friendly computer interfaces. The system is comprised of a central controller and
separate I/O (input/output) modules that interface the actuators (controlled equipment) and
sensors within the system. The total number of sensors connected to the command and data
handling system is 215, the total number of actuators is
145. The interaction with the MTF systems can be done
not only using a local computer, i.e. a computer in the
Service Section, but also by computers at remote sites.
In fact, Argus can work in a server/client configuration
over a secure internet connection. Finally, Argus can also
work in autonomy, i.e. can control the MTF facility
according to pre-defined settings and sequences (as for
example for the above-mentioned lighting sequence).
The Camera Control PC has various tasks including:
 Processing of images from camera system using
dedicated software,
 Buffering of control data files as generated by
ARGUS
The camera configuration is done by means the
HIKVISION provided SW (SADP tool and/or the
iVMS-4200). By means of this SW the cameras are
configured in terms of both system and network
parameters. On the contrary the automatic acquisition
and distribution of the images is done by an ad-hoc
developed SW. This last SW is also able to acquire the
log data files generated by ARGUS and distribute Figure 14 : The Argus controller modules
them to the final remote users.

3 THE EDEN ISS OPERATIONS CONCEPT

Figure 15 : The EDEN ISS Ground Operations Network

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

The operations of the EDEN ISS MTF follow the so-called decentralised approach. This
approach, as is used for manned space operations, foresees the setup of a network of several
entities, geographically distributed, that provide all the needed expertise to support the on-site
operators (i.e. the astronauts for space missions). In this way, the on-site operators can always
rely on the support of the experts, not only for the correct management of the nominal
operations, but especially for the handling of anomalies or malfunctions, or deviation with
respect to the nominal plan and/or the nominal procedures. A Mission Control Centre (MCC)
is appointed of the responsibility of mission management and the interactions with the on-site
operators. It is equipped with all the necessary tools to remotely control the hardware and to
receive, store and distribute the mission data. The MCC coordinates with the other centres, also
named User Home Bases (UHB’s), which are responsible for particular subsystems or particular
aspects of the mission and, as the MCC, can be equipped with the capabilities and the tools to
monitor the status of the remote equipment and even to interact with them via tele-commands.

Figure 16 : Mission Control Center at DLR Bremen (Photo credit: Bruno Stubenrauch)

In that perspective, for the first EDEN ISS mission, six remote centres have been
implemented as shown in Errore. L'origine riferimento non è stata trovata.Figure 15,
one playing the role of Mission Control Centre, the other five configured as UHB’s as
discussed.
 MCC – DLR – Bremen (Germany). The MCC (Figure 16) is connected to the MTF via
satellite link and is responsible for the overall operations of EDEN ISS.
 UHB – Thales Alenia Space Italia (Italy) – Responsible for the ISPR operations
 UHB – University of Guelph (Canada) – Responsible for the NDS subsystem
 UHB – Telespazio (Italy) –Responsible of HD Colour Imaging subsystem
 UHB – University of Wageningen (Netherlands) – Responsible for the Plant Monitoring
 UHB – University of Florida (USA) – Responsible for the Multi-Wavelength Imaging
System
Two different categories of data flow are managed within this network:
 Real time dataflow, providing the capability of hardware control to remote centres
 Data logs and images that are periodically acquired and stored on the MTF computers

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

These data are continuously received at the MCC and distributed to the UHB’s according to
their role and responsibilities. The real time data flow (telemetry/tele-command) is managed by
means of the server/client features of ARGUS. The client applications, installed at the UHB’s,
are connected to the server applications in the MTF, and permit the monitoring and control of
the MTF subsystems via dedicated displays. The project data logs and images are managed by
a software application developed ad-hoc by the EDEN ISS project team. This software is
installed on the MTF computers and is configured to transfer the images acquired by the PHM
and the data log from the MTF to the MCC in Bremen where they are stored on a FTP server.
These data are made available to the UHB’s via a secure FTP connection.

4 PLANT CULTIVATION AND MONITORING PROCEDURES

Several procedures have been developed for the EDEN ISS operations and are available for the
on-site operators. They not only cover the system aspects, i.e. how to configure the subsystems
to set and maintain the correct environmental parameters, or to define the illumination strategy,
but also cover the plant cultivation aspects, including the monitoring of the plant health status.
From this point of view the procedures cover all the plant cultivation phases, from the sowing
and germination to the plant harvesting, including such intermediate phases as the pollination,
pruning and the plant health status monitoring for early detection of plant disease and definition
of countermeasures. In addition, two other important aspects have been considered in the EDEN
ISS project and operations, which are the assessment of the quality and safety of the produced
food, in order to verify that the produced crops are safe to eat and understand the nutritional
content of the food. Several procedures related to food safety and quality have been defined by
the scientific partners and industrial operators, such as the National Research Council (CNR)
in Italy and the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) in Ireland, or DLR and Airbus in
Germany. By using such procedures the on-site operator can monitor/detect pathogens, moulds
and yeasts that can affect the safety of the produced food, or he can measure, using available
instruments, some quality parameters to assess the nutritional content of the plants such as the
amount of sucrose, proteins, vitamins, etc. The on-site operator has also been provided with
procedures and tools to correctly prepare samples to be delivered to the European centres for
off-line analysis on food quality and safety (CNR, LIT) and microbial contamination
assessment (DLR). All these procedures have been developed following standards and
processes similar to those used for the International Space Station procedures. The Antarctic
test campaign has also been used for their validation. As result of the validation activities, 30
procedures are now available in their Final status for the MTF operations at the NMIII site.
They covers System, Science and part of the Maintenance activities.

5 CONCLUDING REMARKS

The EDEN ISS project has developed a facility for plant experiments in extreme environments.
The Antarctic test campaign has allowed the consortium to successfully test the Mobile Test
Facility, its technologies and the related operational procedures and processes aimed at food on
site production. Several lessons learned have been collected for future development. Besides
that, 268 kg of fresh food have been harvested for the NM-III overwintering team.
The facility is now ready for a next phase. Latest info are available on the EDEN ISS website
(https://eden-iss.net/).

6 FUNDING

The EDEN ISS project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research
and innovation program under grant agreement No 636501.

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The EDEN ISS Facility As Platform for Plant Experiments in Extreme Environments

7 ACNOWLEDGEMENT

DLR - Institute for Space Systems, has co-authored the paper. In its role of project leader, has
coordinated all the technical activities and developed the main structure and some critical
subsystems. Moreover, its personnel has conducted all the integration and testing activities, and
managed the Antarctica on site operations.

Telespazio has co-authored the paper. It has designed and developed the HD imaging system
and the tool for data and image distribution to the remote users. In addition Telespazio has
defined and implemented the operational procedures for the MTF Antarctica activities.

Apart them, several other companies and institutional entities have contributed to the EDEN
ISS project as follow:
 Arescosmo (Italy) has developed the Air Management System with the support of
EnginSoft (Italy) for numerical simulations.
 The University of Guelph (Canada) has developed the NDS and the ARGUS Control
system.
 Heliospectra (Sweden) has developed the Illumination System.
 The University of Florida (USA) has developed the Spectral Imaging System.
 TAS-I (Italia) has developed the ISPR Rack and conducted its operations.
 The National Research Council (CNR) in Italy and the Limerick Institute of Technology
(LIT) in Ireland, have developed the procedures for the assessment of Food Quality and
Safety.
 DLR - Institute for Space Medicine and Airbus Defence and Space - Friedrichshafen
site (Germany) have developed the procedures and tools for in-situ bio-detection
analysis and for decontamination.
 Wageningen University and Research (The Netherlands) has selected the plants and
defined the cultivation strategy, and was responsible of the plant status and health
analysis.
 Liquifer (Austria) has contributed to the System Engineering activities and to the
definition of the EDEN ISS Architecture. In addition Liquifer managed the
dissemination, promotion and spin-off activities.

8 CONFLICT OF INTEREST
On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

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