{"id":17235,"date":"2024-01-05T21:13:21","date_gmt":"2024-01-05T13:13:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/milestone-moon-lander-mission-targets-an-otherworldly-frontier-for-dna-data-storage\/"},"modified":"2024-01-05T21:13:21","modified_gmt":"2024-01-05T13:13:21","slug":"milestone-moon-lander-mission-targets-an-otherworldly-frontier-for-dna-data-storage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/milestone-moon-lander-mission-targets-an-otherworldly-frontier-for-dna-data-storage\/","title":{"rendered":"Milestone moon lander mission targets an otherworldly frontier for DNA data storage"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full-width\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"630\" height=\"419\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/240103-landerx-630x419.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-805173\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/240103-landerx-630x419.png 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/240103-landerx-768x511.png 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/240103-landerx.png 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"wp-element-caption\">Astrobotic\u2019s Peregrine lander is prepared for placement within its launch vehicle\u2019s fairing. (Astrobotic Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A mission to send a commercial lander to the moon, set for launch in a couple of days, will bring the fruition of projects that have been in the works for years \u2014 including projects that aim to put DNA into cold storage on the final frontier.<\/p>\n<p>Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic\u2019s robotic Peregrine lander is scheduled to begin a circuitous 40-day trip to the moon with liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 2:18 a.m. ET Monday (11:18 p.m. PT Sunday). NASA TV will stream video coverage of the countdown.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019ll mark the first launch for United Launch Alliance\u2019s next-generation Vulcan Centaur rocket, and the first use of the BE-4 engines built by Jeff Bezos\u2019 Blue Origin space venture for Vulcan\u2019s first-stage booster \u2014 coming nearly 10 years after the partnership between ULA and Blue Origin was announced.<\/p>\n<p>A successful touchdown next month would go into the history books as the first soft landing of a commercially built spacecraft on the lunar surface \u2014 in fact, the first soft lunar landing of any U.S.-built spacecraft since Apollo 17 in 1972. Among the payloads placed aboard the lander is the Iris mini-rover, which would become the first U.S.-built vehicle to wheel around the moon since the Apollo era.<\/p>\n<p>Several NASA-supported payloads will take measurements at the landing site, around a region known as the Gruithuisen Domes, during a science mission that\u2019s projected to last a couple of weeks. Other payloads include micro-robots from Mexico, an art project called MoonArk, mementos and bits of cryptocurrency.<\/p>\n<p>And then there\u2019s the DNA. Samples of DNA \u2014 either contributed by donors or synthesized to contain coded information \u2014 will be riding on the Peregrine lander as well as the Vulcan rocket\u2019s Centaur V upper stage.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Vulcan Cert-1 Mission Profile\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Ai-AVMJdzVQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">DNA on the moon<\/h3>\n<p>The DNA samples destined for the moon are part of Arch Mission Foundation\u2019s Lunar Library II, a data storage disk that\u2019s roughly the size of a DVD. Most of the library consists of smaller disks of nickel that have more than 60 million pages of pictures, text and data etched into them, creating stacks of \u201cnanofiche\u201d records.<\/p>\n<p>The disk is packed aboard the Peregrine lander, and if all goes as planned, it will be safe and secure on the lunar surface for millennia. Such archival disks have flown on earlier space missions, including the Israeli-built Beresheet lander that crashed onto the moon in 2019. (That\u2019s why this archive is called \u201cLunar Library II.\u201d)<\/p>\n<p>Using a microscope, someone coming across the archive could follow the instructions to reconstruct all the information stored on the nickel disks. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe teach all the basic stuff you need to know with pictures, including what you need to know to build a computer,\u201d said Nova Spivack, co-founder and chairman of the Arch Mission Foundation. \u201cThen, once you have a computer, if you don\u2019t already, you could interpret other layers, which are digital, not analog.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Among the information stored on the disks are the contents of Wikipedia and collections from Project Gutenberg and Internet Archive, plus a linguistic key to 5,000 languages as well as music and film archives.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"What's Your Moonshot? Meet The Man Trying To Back Up Planet Earth\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Gw9wYC4ytYI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The DNA archives demonstrate how data can be packed even more densely. Samples of DNA are encapsulated in thin layers of paper that are sandwiched between the nickel disks and sealed with a type of epoxy resin that Spivack calls \u201cartificial amber.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Some of the samples have been collected by a venture called LifeShip from folks who paid $99 each to preserve their personal genetic code on the moon. \u201cThe inspirational vision is, we\u2019re creating population banks to then go expand and populate new worlds,\u201d LifeShip founder Ben Haldeman told GeekWire.<\/p>\n<p>Other samples consist of synthesized DNA, using the molecule\u2019s four-base alphabet (A-C-G-T) to encode data that could represent text or even LOL cat pictures and music videos. That project is spearheaded by the University of Washington\u2019s Molecular Information Systems Lab in partnership with Microsoft Research and Twist Bioscience. <\/p>\n<p>The lab\u2019s co-director, Luis Ceze, said the Arch Mission experiment is designed to show off what could be the ultimate data storage technology in an off-planet setting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe whole point of doing DNA data storage is to make the data very, very dense \u2014 about a million times denser than what we can do with electronic forms today.\u201d Ceze said. \u201cIt\u2019s very durable. In fact, there are some samples that are on the order of 800,000 to a million years old that were read. And since it\u2019s very dense and durable, it\u2019s also very light.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Microsoft and University of Washington DNA Storage Research Project - Extended\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/mILu11yqtG8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<p>In a series of experiments, Ceze and his colleagues successfully tested techniques to search through a DNA database and automate the process of encoding and decoding data. In 2020, Microsoft and Twist joined forces with Illumina and Western Digital to form the DNA Data Storage Alliance \u2014 an industry group that now counts Ceze\u2019s lab and more than three dozen other organizations among its members.<\/p>\n<p>The DNA database stored on the Arch Mission Foundation\u2019s disk includes 10,000 crowdsourced images that were collected for the University of Washington\u2019s \u201cMemories in DNA\u201d project. Some of those images are on display in a mosaic-style portrait of pioneering geneticist Rosalind Franklin that UW unveiled in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>Ceze said it\u2019s \u201cincredibly mind-expanding\u201d to contemplate the prospect of sending data stored in molecular form out into space. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think whoever finds it, if they know how it works, they\u2019ll read it easily,\u201d he said. \u201cBut if not, they have a little bit of a puzzle to retrieve the information there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Spivack suspects those future explorers will be able to figure it out. \u201cIn the far, far future, any form of life around here is probably going to be DNA-based,\u201d he said. \u201cSo, if they find this payload, they might be able to understand that DNA piece of it. And maybe that\u2019ll be even easier for them to understand than digital data.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full-width\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"630\" height=\"472\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/200223-ros-5g-closeup-630x472.jpg\" alt=\"Rosalind Franklin portrait\" class=\"wp-image-549118\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/200223-ros-5g-closeup-630x472.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/200223-ros-5g-closeup-1260x945.jpg 1260w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/200223-ros-5g-closeup-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/200223-ros-5g-closeup-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/200223-ros-5g-closeup-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u201cMemories in DNA\u201d images form the face of Rosalind Franklin. (GeekWire Photo \/ Alan Boyle)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">DNA in deep space<\/h3>\n<p>Even if future space explorers lose track of Lunar Library II, there\u2019s still a chance they\u2019ll come across a different treasure trove of DNA sent into deep space aboard the Vulcan rocket\u2019s Centaur V upper stage.<\/p>\n<p>Houston-based Celestis has packed a set of capsules containing DNA samples from paying customers aboard the rocket stage, which is destined to go into deep space beyond the Earth-moon system after it deploys Astrobotic\u2019s Peregrine lander. The payload also includes capsules containing the cremated remains of loved ones.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe go out more than a hundred million miles into a heliocentric orbit,\u201d Celestis CEO Charles Chafer told GeekWire. Theoretically, the Centaur V stage and its payload could keep orbiting the sun for centuries to come.<\/p>\n<p>Similar sets of capsules are packed aboard the Peregrine lander. (One of the moon-bound capsules contains a DNA sample from science-fiction pioneer Arthur C. Clarke.)<\/p>\n<p>Celestis has been doing \u201cspace burials\u201d for more than a quarter-century, but the DNA service is a more recent addition to the company\u2019s offerings. Collection kits are sent out to customers, who swipe a sample of spit with a cheek swab and then mail the kit back to a lab. Technicians extract the DNA from the sample and preserve it in a bit of powder. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe end up flying the DNA just like we fly a sample of ashes, in an individual capsule,\u201d Chafer said. \u201cThe only difference is that for our DNA samples, we take the extra step of manufacturing the capsules out of titanium instead of aluminum, which is our standard for ashes. It gives a little bit more length of viability by having the DNA in a pretty heavily shielded container.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full-width\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"630\" height=\"490\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/dnaKit_1000-630x490.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-805352\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/dnaKit_1000-630x490.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/dnaKit_1000-768x598.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/dnaKit_1000.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"wp-element-caption\">Celestis\u2019 DNA sample kit lets customers collect saliva using a cheek swab. The sample is then sent to a lab and processed into a powder that\u2019s placed in a titanium capsule. (Celestis Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Why do people pay thousands of dollars to have Celestis send their DNA or cremated remains into space? \u201cIt\u2019s an interesting combination of motivations,\u201d Chafer said. \u201cI think one of \u2019em is, it\u2019s just fun. It\u2019s a cool way to be involved in a real space mission, and it\u2019s such a different feeling when you\u2019re standing watching a rocket take off when part of you or a loved one is on board that rocket.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s a deeper motivation as well. \u201cA lot of people see it as a symbolic way to bring light to the fact that humanity is trying to spread throughout the solar system,\u201d Chafer said. \u201cAnd these folks are in the forefront of that, if only symbolically.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Celestis is adding some star power to this flight, in the form of celebrity samples of DNA and ashes. The manifest includes some dearly departed Star Trek luminaries: franchise creator Gene Roddenberry, James \u201cScotty\u201d Doohan, DeForest \u201cBones\u201d Kelley and Nichelle \u201cUhura\u201d Nichols. There are also hair samples (including bits of DNA) from three U.S. presidents: George Washington, Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy.<\/p>\n<p>United Launch Alliance CEO Tory Bruno and his wife, Rebecca Bruno, contributed DNA samples as well. Chafer said it was Tory Bruno\u2019s idea. \u201cWe got to talking, and he said, \u2018I want to do this,&#8217;\u201d Chafer recalled. \u201cAnd then he said, \u2018I\u2019d like to take my wife along with me.\u2019 I said, \u2018Absolutely! How quickly can I add you to the manifest?&#8217;\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Years before his death in 2008, Arthur C. Clarke said \u201csome super civilization\u201d may find his DNA sample in the distant future, \u201cand I may exist in another time.\u201d Could that civilization clone Clarke \u2014 or, for that matter, George Washington?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOff-planet DNA storage is a real thing,\u201d Chafer said. \u201cWe provide it for the same reasons that people store their DNA here. If you\u2019re concerned about surviving any number of Earth-failing scenarios, you\u2019ve got your DNA.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That may sound far-fetched, but Chafer said such flights of fancy are part of the appeal. \u201cThis is the fun part \u2014 here we are, speculating about the limits of alien technology to visit our spacecraft and clone people,\u201d he said. \u201cDo people genuinely believe that will happen? Maybe a few. Do several people say, \u2018What if \u2026 and, you know, that would be cool\u2019? Yeah. They do.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Astrobotic\u2019s Peregrine lander is prepared for placement within its launch vehicle\u2019s fairing. (Astrobotic Photo) A mission to send a commercial lander to the moon, set for launch in a couple of days, will bring the fruition of projects that have been in the works for years \u2014 including projects that aim to put DNA into [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[304,697,4519,4520,4521,2043,625,190,750,4518],"class_list":["post-17235","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-artemis","tag-astrobotic","tag-celestis","tag-dna","tag-dna-storage","tag-lunar-lander","tag-moon","tag-nasa","tag-united-launch-alliance","tag-vulcan-rocket"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17235"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17235"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17235\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17235"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17235"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17235"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}