Fig. 1: Summary of microbial impact during long-duration space missions.
From: Microbial applications for sustainable space exploration beyond low Earth orbit
Space exploration can benefit from the use of microbes in a variety of applications including incorporation into biological life support systems (BLSS), in situ resource utilization beyond LEO, and astronaut therapeutics. However, increased pathogenicity and biofilm formation during spaceflight could threaten astronaut health and spacecraft integrity so mitigation strategies will be needed to prevent such hazards. Microbial applications related to health (purple), renewable resources (green) or both (purple and green) are highlighted. Figure created with BioRender.com.
