A pressurized dome atrium grows food crops off-Earth. Reduced gravity changes how plants orient and how fluids move in soil, artificial LEDs replace sunlight, and a heater plus CO2 scrubber must keep temperature and air composition inside survivable bounds against the harsh exterior.
growth_rate ∝ light · (1 − |g − g_opt|) · scrubber_efficiency
T(t+dt) = T + (heater_output − loss_to_exterior)·dt
O2_rate ∝ growth_rate · plant_count
- Gravity preset — switches between Moon (0.16g), Mars (0.38g), and Earth (1g); very low or very high gravity slows growth versus an optimum near partial gravity.
- Grow-light intensity — replaces sunlight; more light speeds photosynthesis and growth, up to a point.
- Thermal control — heater output fighting heat loss to the freezing exterior; too little and the atrium chills, damaging crops.
- CO₂ scrubber rate — keeps the air breathable by removing excess CO2 the plants and crew produce/consume.
Real-world: NASA's Veggie/APH experiments on the ISS and proposed Mars greenhouse designs face exactly these trade-offs — artificial light, thermal insulation, and closed-loop atmosphere control — to grow food beyond Earth.