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Space Agriculture: How Will We Grow Food Beyond Earth?

August 2026

How will people feed themselves when they begin living beyond Earth?

Establishing sustainable communities on the Moon, Mars or in orbital habitats will require much more than simply transporting food from our planet. We will need to understand how plants, soil, microorganisms, water and nutrients behave under increased radiation, reduced gravity and within closed life-support systems.

Professor Nigel Mason will introduce the fascinating field of space agriculture and explain how growing food beyond Earth brings together molecular physics, chemistry, biology, planetary science and engineering. He will also show how research intended to support future life in space could help us develop more resilient, efficient and sustainable agriculture here on Earth.

The lecture will be held in English, and admission is free and open to everyone.

Date

21 August 2026

Time

18:00

Venue

Horizont Hall

Speaker

Professor Nigel J. Mason OBE is Professor of Molecular Physics at the University of Kent and an internationally distinguished scientist working across molecular physics, astrochemistry, planetary science, atmospheric physics and radiation science. His research investigates how electrons and photons interact with atoms and molecules and how the resulting molecular fragmentation and chemical reactions shape environments ranging from the Earth’s atmosphere to interstellar space and planetary surfaces.
Professor Mason studied physics at University College London, where he received a First-Class BSc and a PhD, and was subsequently awarded a DSc by the University of London. As a Royal Society University Research Fellow, he established the Molecular Physics Group at UCL. He later became Professor of Molecular Physics at the Open University before joining the University of Kent in 2018.
He has held major leadership roles in European planetary science, including serving as President of the Europlanet Society and becoming the founding President of Europlanet AISBL. He is also an Honorary Professor at the University of Innsbruck, Chief Scientific Adviser to ATOMKI in Hungary, and a Fellow of the Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Royal Astronomical Society.
Professor Mason was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 2007 for services to science. His current interdisciplinary interests include space agriculture and the scientific and technological challenges involved in supporting sustainable human life beyond Earth.