ESA funds turning waste into a resource for future missions to the Moon and Mars
The European Space Agency has launched a new wave of research focused on one of the toughest problems of long-term human stay beyond Earth: how, in closed space systems, to throw away almost nothing and instead turn waste into a new resource. At the heart of this approach is the idea of a circular economy in space, that is, the development of technologies that would, in future bases on the Moon, during travel to Mars, or in other long-duration missions, enable the reuse of water, air, biomass, and by-products of human presence. This is precisely why ESA, through the campaign “Sustainable Future: Advancing Circular Life Support Systems,” selected five activities intended to advance closed life support systems and bring them closer to practical application.
These are projects funded through the Discovery element of ESA’s Basic Activities, a programme open to early technological maturation and the validation of new ideas. According to ESA data, activities from Belgium, Luxembourg, and France were selected, and each addresses a different bottleneck in the development of self-sustaining space habitats: from producing bioplastics from recycled carbon and processing hard-to-degrade biomass, through the development of edible packaging, to improving air quality and strengthening plant health in a closed system. At a time when space agencies and the private sector are planning human presence beyond low Earth orbit ever more seriously, such projects are gaining strategic weight that goes far beyond laboratory curiosity.
Why a closed loop is crucial for space missions
For short missions in orbit, it is possible to deliver a large share of consumables from Earth. But for flights that would last months or even years, such a model becomes too expensive, logistically complex, and operationally risky. Every additional kilogram of water, food, spare materials, or sanitary consumables increases mission requirements. That is why, over recent decades, the concept of regenerative life support systems has been developed, in which waste is not seen as a problem to be removed, but as a raw material for a new production cycle.
In this field, ESA relies on the long-running MELiSSA project, an acronym for Micro-Ecological Life Support System Alternative. This programme brings together a network of research institutions and industrial partners with the goal of developing an artificial ecosystem that could, with the help of microorganisms and plants, regenerate oxygen, water, and part of the food supply. ESA states that the goal is to get as close as possible to maximum closed-cycle efficiency, that is, to a system that depends minimally on supplies from Earth. The MELiSSA pilot plant operates at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and has for years served as a European platform for testing such processes in conditions that mimic a closed habitat.
But despite progress, closing the loop is still not a solved problem. ESA data show that existing approaches can turn a large part of biomass into useful products, but not all of it. Components such as lignin and other hard-to-degrade residues of plant origin are especially demanding. In addition, in enclosed spaces such as those that would exist in lunar or Martian habitats, it is not enough merely to recycle water and carbon. It is also necessary to maintain very high air quality, prevent the buildup of volatile organic compounds and microbiological contamination, and extract as much functional value as possible from every gram of biomass. These are precisely the points targeted by the new activities that ESA selected in July 2024.
Belgian approaches: from waste to plastics and new materials
Among the selected activities, two Belgian projects by the VITO institute stand out in particular, as they view the problem through the lens of materials and the industrial usability of waste. The first project focuses on the broad area of producing biopolymers from recycled carbon and carbon dioxide. The microorganism
Cupriavidus necator is at the centre of attention, known for its ability to create useful biopolymers from various input streams. ESA’s activities portal states that the use of volatile fatty acids, lactate, ethanol, and CO2 is being considered as feedstock for obtaining materials such as PHA and PLA.
Such polymers are attractive because, in future space habitats, they could simultaneously serve multiple functions. It would be possible to produce packaging, medical consumables, containers, protective components, and even feedstock for 3D printing, all without constant reliance on deliveries from Earth. In other words, what is today waste carbon or a by-product of a biological process in a mission could, in tomorrow’s closed system, become a local material for making everyday needed objects. This reduces not only the amount of waste, but also the crew’s dependence on the supply chain, which is one of the key safety determinants for distant missions.
The second VITO project addresses one of the most stubborn problems within the MELiSSA loop: lignocellulosic biomass and especially lignin, a fraction that is difficult to use efficiently. According to the activity description on ESA’s portal, the goal is to use reactive extrusion so that sugars from biomass can be separated more efficiently from lignin. This would increase the availability of sugars for microbial processes, while the remaining lignin would cease to be dead weight in the system. Quite the opposite, its natural properties, such as fire resistance and the ability to block UV radiation, open up the possibility of using it as a raw material for the development of specialised materials in extraterrestrial conditions.
For space missions, such a shift is not trivial. If more useful fractions can be obtained from the same quantity of cultivated biomass, the system becomes more compact, more efficient, and more resilient. ESA states that current conversions in some configurations reach about 70 percent of biomass, and the goal of the new approaches is to get significantly closer to a much higher degree of utilisation. This means not only less waste, but also better planning of mass, energy, and space in a future habitat.
Spirulina as food, packaging, and feedstock for reuse
An important part of the new research revolves around microalgae, primarily the organism Limnospira, better known to the wider public as spirulina. The company Blue Horizon from Luxembourg is developing thin edible bioplastic films based on spirulina, and ESA’s activities portal states that such films could serve for packaging various products within a closed system. At first glance, this may seem like a narrow technological detail, but in practice packaging in space is a very sensitive issue: it must protect the contents, must not unnecessarily create waste, and it is desirable for it to be multifunctional.
That is precisely why the idea of edible, or at least biologically easily integrable, packaging has added value. Such films could be used for food packaging, assistance in handling powders and granules, and even for expanding the crew’s dietary diversity if the material proves safe and suitable for consumption. Blue Horizon is also exploring whether waste generated by 3D printing thermoplastic materials based on spirulina can be reprocessed into thin films. This would further close the loop: the same biomass would be food, production feedstock, and packaging material, while residues from one process would become input for another.
This approach reflects a broader trend in space technology: every component must have as many functions as possible. A material that is at the same time edible, easy to process, and suitable for local production has far greater value than a single-use product that ends up as inert waste after use. In the lunar or Martian context, where logistical resources will be limited, precisely such multiple use of materials may determine the sustainability of the entire system.
Clean air without harmful side effects
Closed space habitats do not depend only on recycling water and food. Control of the air astronauts breathe is equally important. This is why Redwire Space, through the GreenLung project, is examining whether its technology, designed to remove carbon dioxide and volatile organic compounds, can also play an additional role in removing or inactivating viral particles from the air. According to ESA’s activity description, the project relies on a photobioreactor subunit and a model coliphage to measure the efficiency of removal and the distribution of viral particles.
Such a research direction is especially important after experiences with respiratory infections and increased sensitivity to air quality in enclosed spaces on Earth. In a space habitat, the problem is even more complex because the air is constantly recirculated, and there is no space for isolation, equipment replacement, or simply ventilation as on Earth. Traditional purification methods can be energy-intensive, operationally expensive, or create undesirable by-products such as ozone. If it were shown that microalgae and related bioreactor processes can contribute to cleaner air without such drawbacks, that would be an important step toward a more natural and energetically balanced system.
It should be emphasised here that this is a research phase, not a finished technology ready for operational use in missions. But that is precisely the value of ESA’s Discovery programme: to recognise an idea at a moment when it is not yet an industrial standard, but can open an entirely new technological direction. In the case of GreenLung, that direction combines life support, contamination control, and biological processes in a single solution.
Waste biomass as support for growing plants
The fifth selected activity comes from the University of Nantes and again starts from spirulina, but this time with an emphasis on plant cultivation. According to ESA’s project description, the researchers want to determine whether raw or hydrolysed spirulina biomass from the MELiSSA loop can act as a means of biocontrol and biostimulation for crops such as tomato and lettuce. In other words, the research explores whether a residue from one part of the life-support system can be turned into support for another part of the same system, namely the cultivation of edible plants.
If such an approach proved successful, the benefits would be multiple. First, the overall circularity of the system would increase because biomass would not end up as a low-value residue. Second, plants could potentially receive additional protection or growth stimulation without the need for separate chemical inputs. Third, the developed solutions could also have very concrete applications on Earth, especially in the area of valorising industrial residues and developing more sustainable agriculture.
This two-way logic is precisely common in space research: technologies developed for extreme conditions beyond Earth often later find civil applications on Earth. Systems that must be frugal, safe, and closed are by nature close to the challenges of a circular economy, waste reduction, and sustainable resource management in conventional industry and agriculture.
The bigger picture: space sustainability is no longer a side topic
Although the concept of a circular economy in space is often associated with orbital debris, satellite servicing, and the recycling of materials in orbit, ESA has in recent years been looking at sustainability more openly through life systems for human missions as well. The Discovery programme states that it funds early research and technological development in areas where open innovation can bring solutions to future European missions. Within that framework, the campaign on circular life support systems is not an isolated experiment, but part of a broader effort for Europe to develop its own technological capacities for long-term human presence beyond Earth.
This is especially important at a time when international programmes for returning to the Moon and planning future Martian missions are no longer merely theoretical considerations. The longer and more distant the missions, the more pronounced the need for closed cycles becomes. It is not enough to have a rocket capable of bringing a crew to its destination; it is necessary to ensure that the crew can live for months or years with limited inflow of resources, with minimal waste and maximum system safety. That is why research that at first glance sounds narrowly specialised, such as separating lignin or making packaging films from spirulina, becomes an infrastructural issue in the space context.
According to available information, the five selected activities from the campaign launched in 2024 were expected, over approximately 18 months, to move their concepts from an early phase toward more mature technological solutions. This means that it is already possible to speak of concrete results in terms of proving feasibility, laboratory validation, and defining the next development steps, although final integration into operational systems remains a long-term task. In this sense, the institutional message is also important: ESA is investing in relatively small, targeted studies that can fill very concrete gaps in future closed life systems.
What Earth could gain from space solutions
Perhaps the most interesting part of this story is that technologies developed for space do not necessarily remain in space. Bioplastics produced from recycled carbon, more efficient processing of lignocellulosic biomass, more natural air purification systems, and new uses of algal biomass in agriculture all have potential value in terrestrial industries as well. At a time when Europe is striving to reduce dependence on fossil feedstocks, better manage organic waste, and develop more resilient food production systems, such research gains additional weight.
That is why ESA’s latest projects should not be viewed merely as exotic experiments for the distant future. They are also a test of how far science and industry can go in turning waste into a resource in an environment where there is no room for wastefulness. If that logic proves sustainable under the conditions of future bases on the Moon or during travel to Mars, then its application on Earth could be even simpler and even broader. And that means that the development of closed space systems is no longer only a matter of space exploration, but also a very concrete contribution to technologies that could, in the decades ahead, help in managing resources and reducing waste here as well, on Earth.
Sources:- European Space Agency (ESA) – official campaign on searching for solutions for sustainable living in space and closed life support systems (link)- ESA Discovery – programme description within Basic Activities that funds early studies and technology development (link)- ESA – overview of implemented OSIP ideas for 2024, including the campaign “Sustainable Future: Advancing Circular Life Support Systems” and selected activities (link)- Activities Portal – Broad-range biopolymer manufacturing from recycled carbon and CO2, description of VITO’s project for producing biopolymers from recycled carbon and CO2 (link)- Activities Portal – Reactive extrusion to maximise lignocellulosic biomass valorization, description of the project for more efficient separation of sugars and lignin from biomass (link)- Activities Portal – Limnospira-based edible bioplastic thin films for packaging, description of Blue Horizon’s project on edible bioplastic films made from spirulina (link)- Activities Portal – Microalgae based GreenLung technology boosts air quality by virus elimination, description of Redwire Space’s project on air purification using a photobioreactor (link)- Activities Portal – Investigation of the potential of raw and hydrolysed Spirulina biomass for biocontrol and plant biostimulation, description of the University of Nantes project on the use of spirulina biomass for plant protection and growth stimulation (link)- ESA – overview of the MELiSSA project and the pilot plant in Barcelona as a European platform for developing regenerative life support systems (link)- ESA – MELiSSA life support project, a broader overview of the development of closed life support systems and the goal of moving closer to a self-sustaining ecosystem for future missions (link)
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