I asked the team about possible mitigation strategies to treat the lunar regolith such that it can properly sustain plant life.

“Ahhh, a very important question,” they responded. “Our study suggests that some mitigations might be needed for really good growth. Some of that mitigation may occur by repeatedly growing plants in the same sample, letting the biology condition the soil. Other more active mitigations, like cycling water through the regolith, could work as well.”

A key goal of NASA’s upcoming Artemis program is to build a sustainable presence on the Moon. The new paper, with its remarkable findings, sets us in the right direction toward making this happen.