It’s a well-known fact that if humanity wishes to explore deep space and to live and work on other planets, we need to bring Earth’s environment with us. This includes life support systems that leverage biological processes – aka. Bioregenerative Life Support Systems (BLSS) – but also the many species of microbes that are essential to living systems. Humans already bring microbes with them when they travel to space, in particular, to the International Space Station (ISS). These microbes become part of the natural environment, sticking to surfaces, growing in nooks and crannies, and getting into everything.

Given their constant presence, it’s paramount that we understand how they survive in space. In addition, they have potential uses that could enable greater self-sufficiency in space. For example, certain types of bacteria and fungi extract minerals from rocks as a source of nutrients. In a recent study aboard the ISS, researchers from Cornell and the University of Edinburgh investigated how these species could be used to extract platinum from a meteorite under microgravity conditions. Their results suggest that this could be an effective method for obtaining mineral resources in space and lessening dependence on Earth.

The study was led by Rosa Santomartino, an assistant professor of biological and environmental engineering in Cornell’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS), and Alessandro Stirpe, a research associate in microbiology at Cornell and the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. They were joined by researchers from the Medical University of Graz in Austria, Rice University, Cancer Research UK, the UK Centre for Astrobiology at the University of Edinburgh, Kayser Space Ltd, and Kayser Italia. Their study was published on Jan. 30th in npj Microgravity.

*A bioreactor, produced by the BioAsteroid project at the University of Edinburgh. Credit: University of Edinburgh*

The work was part of the BioAsteroid project, a collaborative effort between the University of Edinburgh and the European Space Agency (ESA). This project is led by Charles Cockell, a professor of astrobiology at the University of Edinburgh and a senior author on the study. Cockell and his colleagues developed “biomining reactors” that were deployed to the ISS in late 2020/early 2021 to investigate how gravity affects the interaction between microbes and rock in microgravity.

These reactors contained samples of an L-chondrite asteroid that were treated with the bacterium Sphingomonas desiccabilis and the fungus Penicillium simplicissimum. These microbes are promising for resource extraction because they produce carboxylic acids that bind to minerals and release them from rocks. However, there is still some ambiguity as to how this mechanism works. To this end, the experiment also included a metabolomic analysis, in which a portion of the liquid culture was extracted and analyzed for biomolecules and secondary metabolites. As Santomartino said in a Cornell Chronicle press release:

This is probably the first experiment of its kind on the International Space Station on [a] meteorite. We wanted to keep the approach tailored in a way, but also general to increase its impact. These are two completely different species, and they will extract different things. So we wanted to understand what and how, but keep the results relevant to a broader perspective, because not much is known about the mechanisms that influence microbial behavior in space.

The experiment was conducted aboard the ISS by NASA astronaut Michael Scott Hopkins while the researchers conducted their own control version in the lab. This allowed them to examine how the experiment would work in microgravity compared to Earth’s gravity. Santomartino and Stirpe then analyzed the experiment data, which revealed that of the 44 different elements, 18 were extracted through biological processes. Said Stirpe:

We split the analysis to the single element, and we started to ask, OK, does the extraction behave differently in space compared to Earth? Are these elements more extracted when we have a bacterium or a fungus, or when we have both of them? Is this just noise, or can we see something that maybe makes a bit of sense? We don’t see massive differences, but there are some very interesting ones.

NASA astronaut Michael Scott Hopkins performs the insertion of the experiment containers in KUBIK (left) and the six hardware units inserted into the KUBIK onboard the ISS (right). Credits: ESA/NASA/

Their analysis revealed that the microbes had consistent results in both Earth gravity and microgravity. However, it also showed distinct changes in microbial metabolism, especially with the fungus samples. In microgravity, the fungus increased its production of carboxylic acids and other molecules, leading to the extraction of more palladium, platinum, and other elements. Meanwhile, the non-biological leaching experiment proved to be less effective in microgravity than on Earth. Said Santomartino:

In these cases, the microbe doesn’t improve the extraction itself, but it’s kind of keeping the extraction at a steady level, regardless of the gravity condition. And this is not just true for the palladium, but for different types of metals, although not all of them. Indeed, another complex but very interesting result, I think, is that the extraction rate varies a lot depending on the metal you are considering and on the microbe and gravity conditions.

This experiment has successfully demonstrated the potential for “biomining,” which could be used by future astronauts exploring the Moon and Mars. In addition to life support systems that rely on cyanobacteria and other photosynthetic organisms to clean the air and generate edible algae, microbes and fungi could be used to leach minerals from the local regolith. These, in turn, could be used to generate building materials for structures and tools, reducing the amount of supplies that need to be sent from Earth.

In addition, biomining has potential applications here on Earth, providing a biological means for extracting metals in resource-limited environments or from mine waste. This technique could also lead to biotechnologies that facilitate the emergence of a zero-waste, circular economy. But the team cautions that more research is required, as there are many variables and uncertainties regarding the impact space has on microbes.

“Depending on the microbial species, depending on the space conditions, depending on the method that researchers are using, everything changes,” Santomartino said. “Bacteria and fungi are all so diverse, one to each other, and the space condition is so complex that, at present, you cannot give a single answer. So maybe we need to dig more. I don’t mean to be too poetic, but to me, this is a little bit [of] the beauty of that. It’s very complex. And I like it.”

Further Reading: Cornell Chronicle, npj Microgravity.

A brokered deal with regulators and consumer advocates will allow State Farm General to keep controversial increases in home insurance rates that took effect last year in the wake of the devastating Los Angeles wildfires.

The agreement sent to a judge late Friday cements a $530-million emergency hike in home insurance rates Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara negotiated with the insurer last summer.

“The agreement will provide financial relief to many policyholders while ensuring continued coverage for State Farm policyholders while California’s insurance market stabilizes,” the insurance department said in a news release.

State Farm argued the emergency hike was necessary because catastrophic fire losses jeopardized its financial ratings.

The company has reported that it paid out $6.2 billion in claims last year, largely from the wildfires, with most of the costs covered through reinsurance payments. The company has told regulators it anticipates to pay an additional $1 billion in claims.

The deal allows the insurer to keep an average 17% increase in homeowner rates. Local rates for many of the company’s 1 million home customers were much higher.

However, consumer advocates argued the agreement held the line on even higher increases and halted further policy cancellations that have deepened a crisis in the state’s insurance industry.

State Farm, California’s largest home insurer, froze new business in 2023, announced 72,000 mass non-renewals, and sought a series of rate hikes. Its average homeowners premium in California doubled from 2020 to 2024.

Under Friday’s agreement, State Farm agrees to forgo mass non-renewals in 2026 and undergo further review of its rates by 2027.

Additionally, State Farm will be required to return nearly two-thirds of its 15% increase to condominium owners, deliver a small refund to rental property owners and be able to raise premiums for renters a half a percent.

“This rate enables State Farm General to continue serving existing California customers,” the company said in a statement. “We will continue to monitor our capacity to support the risks we insure and maintain the financial strength needed to pay claims and support customers and communities when it matters most.”

If approved by an administrative law judge, the settlement will be forwarded to Lara, who is expected to back it.

The arrangement sidesteps efforts to tie State Farm’s rates to its handling of disaster claims.

Under pressure from community advocates and lawmakers, Lara in May had said he wanted the two issues evaluated together.

In June, Lara announced his department would conduct an “expedited” examination into State Farm’s market conduct. In rate hearing proceedings, agency staff sought to block discussion of State Farm’s claims handling in relation to its quest for premium hikes.

The pact does not directly address complaints of unhappy policyholders who say Lara’s administration has failed to hold State Farm accountable, which the insurance department has disputed.

A department spokesman said Lara would not comment on the matter while the rate settlement is before an administrative judge.

The Jan. 7, 2025, firestorm destroyed at least 16,000 homes, triggering more than 42,000 insurance claims. State Farm has said it has 13,500 fire and auto claims related to the fires.

The insurer has come under heavy criticism from fire victims over its handling of claims, including complaints of low payout offers, denials for toxin testing and delays in payments for living expenses. The company has declined to comment on the complaints.

Some 51,000 State Farm homeowners live in disaster areas struggling to recover from the L.A. firestorm. Regulatory filings show those areas among the hardest hit by the current hikes.

Malibu resident Chad Peters said his bill from State Farm increased 140% in the last year, from $3,500 to $8,400.

Peters said he has battled State Farm for 14 months over smoke and fire damage to his home from the Palisades fire, and that the insurer at one point attempted to cancel his coverage because the house remained unrepaired.

He called rate increases in such circumstances “ludicrous, while they’re giving everyone such a hard time with their insurance…I mean, mine has been a steep uphill battle all year long.”

Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez (D-Alhambra) had urged Lara to delay hikes until after the investigation into State Farm’s conduct.

“The fact that I have so many individuals who have not received any of their claims, that are still navigating denials and delays, who are actively running out of [living expense payments] and … facing housing insecurity — it makes me deeply concerned,” Pérez said.

Pérez, along with Sens. Ben Allen (D-Pacific Palisades) and Sade Elhawary (D-Los Angeles), in April pressed Lara to defer rate hikes until State Farm General’s claims practices could be investigated. “This was a big priority for us.”

Pérez said she would seek answers to the market conduct exam as part of a Senate inquiry into the insurance department’s handling of those complaints, along with scrutiny of the department’s discipline of a compliance officer who criticized State Farm’s handling of claims.

State Farm General, an offshoot of national insurance giant State Farm Mutual, contends it has been financially sinking as seasonal wildfires morph into catastrophic urban conflagrations that destroy towns.

In mid-2024, the company asked to raise home premiums by nearly $1 billion. Lara secured an agreement that State Farm Mutual lend its California affiliate $400 million, but the insurer would not agree to cancel plans for dropping 11,000 more policyholders.

The settlement allows State Farm to avoid a public hearing that would have forced the disclosure of solvency records, mass non-renewals and other information it said would help competitors.