This Week In Space podcast: Episode 132 —Living in Martian Mushrooms

On Episode 132 of This Week In Space , Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik talk with Lynn Rothschild on how mushroom mycelia might be utilized as a Mars habitat-building resource.?

This week, we're diving deep into some really clever and cutting-edge tech for Martian habitats... made from fungus! Dr. Rothschild of the NASA Ames Research Center has been working for years on how the organic material can be used to make bricks, to create shaped structures, and even to create an "astropharmacy" to supply certain compounds needed by the crew of a Mars excursion! And it is sufficiently enticing that NASA's NIAC innovation program has given her no less than five grants (which are not easy to get!) to study the possibilities.

Join us for this really engaging and blue-sky conversation!

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Space news of the week

• Top 'safety risk' for the ISS is a leak that has been ongoing for 5 years, NASA audit finds
• Solar storm bombarding Earth now may reach 'extreme' levels, sparking auroras down to Alabama and straining hurricane-weakened power grids
• 'It was 3 hours of magic': Spectacular auroras thrill stargazers across the world (and internet) as intense geomagnetic storm batters Earth (photos)
• Jupiter's Great Red Spot is being squeezed, Hubble Telescope finds — and nobody knows why (video)
• NASA - Lynn J. Rothschild
• Could Future Homes on the Moon and Mars Be Made of Fungi?
• There could be fungus among us on Mars with this wild astronaut house idea

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About This Week In Space

This Week in Space covers the new space age. Every Friday we take a deep dive into a fascinating topic. What's happening with the new race to the moon and other planets? When will SpaceX really send people to Mars?

Join Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik from Space.com as they tackle those questions and more each week on Friday afternoons. You can subscribe today on your favorite podcatcher.