Do Peru's potatoes have the right stuff?
秘魯的土豆能經受住考驗嗎？

That's the question scientists will be asking in Lima next month, when a selection of tubers will begin undergoing tests to determine whether they're fit to grow on Mars.
這是下個月科學家將要在秘魯首都利馬問的一個問題，屆時，經過精心挑選的土豆塊莖將接受測試，以確定它們能否在火星上種植。

NASA, the US space agency, is conducting the pioneering experiment together with Lima's International Potato Center (CIP).
美國航天局（NASA）將與利馬國際馬鈴薯中心（CIP）聯手，進行這一開創性實驗。

They will cultivate a hundred selected varieties already subjected to rigorous evaluation in extreme, Mars-like conditions that could eventually pave the way to building a dome on the Red Planet for farming the vegetable.
他們將對100種精心挑選的、已在類火星極端環境下嚴格評估的品種進行培育，而這最終將為人們在這顆紅色星球上建立蔬菜種植“大棚”鋪平道路。

The selection was made from a total of 4,500 varieties registered at CIP, a nonprofit research facility that aims to reduce poverty and achieve food security.
國際馬鈴薯中心是一個致力于削減貧困、保證糧食安全的非營利研究機構。這些土豆是從在國際馬鈴薯中心登記注冊的4500個品種中挑選出來的。

Of the selected candidates, 40 are native to the Andes Mountains, conditioned to grow in different ecological zones, withstand sudden climate changes and reproduce in rocky, arid terrain.
在獲選土豆中，有40種是安第斯山脈土生土長的品種。這些品種可在不同生態地區生長、對氣候的突然變化具有耐受性，并可在多巖石的干旱土壤中生長繁育。

The other 60 are genetically modified varieties able to survive with little water and salt. They are also immune to viruses.
另外60種土豆均為轉基因品種，能夠在缺水和低鈉的環境中生存。此外，這些品種還對病毒免疫。

Those that pass the tests must meet a final criterion -- they must be able not only to grow well on Mars but also reproduce in large quantities.
這些品種最終必須達到一個標準：不僅能在火星上茁壯生長，而且還能被大量繁育。

"We're almost 100 percent certain that many of the selected potatoes will past the tests," said Julio Valdivia Silva, a Peruvian NASA astrobiologist who is taking part in the ambitious project.
參與美國航天局此項宏偉計劃的秘魯裔太空生物學家胡里奧·瓦爾迪維亞·席爾瓦說：“精選出來的土豆中，將會有不少品種通過測試，對此我們有百分百的把握。”

The scientists hope the experiment will also help address the earthly scourges of hunger and malnutrition by identifying varieties suited to growing in harsh conditions.
科學家還希望通過該實驗找出適合在嚴酷環境下生長的土豆種類，來幫助解決地球人口饑餓和營養不良的難題。

"We must be prepared for the future," said virologist Jan Kreuze, a scientist at CIP. "To respond to desertification, rising temperature and high salt content in the soil."
“我們必須為未來做準備”，國際馬鈴薯中心的科學家揚·克魯茲說。“準備應對沙漠化、氣候變暖和高鹽分的土壤。”

Vegetable of the future
未來的蔬菜

The soil in La Joya Pampas -- a sector of the Atacama Desert in southern Peru that's considered one of the driest places on earth -- is very similar to that found on the Red Planet.
位于秘魯南部阿塔卡馬沙漠的潘帕斯德拉霍亞地區被認為是地球上最干旱的地方之一，那里的土壤與人們在火星上發現的非常相似。

The scientists plan to transport 200 pounds (100 kilos) of it to a CIP laboratory in Lima that will simulate the complex Martian atmosphere -- which contains mostly carbon dioxide -- and expose it to extreme ultraviolet radiation.
科學家計劃將大約200磅（100千克）土壤運送到利馬國際馬鈴薯中心的實驗室中。在那里，他們將模擬火星上二氧化碳居多的復雜大氣環境，并將土壤暴露在極端紫外線照射中。

"We'll have more concrete results in one or two years, Valdivia said, adding that it will take more than five years to launch an unmanned mission to Mars.
瓦爾迪維亞說：“未來一兩年內，我們會得出實驗的具體結果。我們還將花至少五年的時間向火星發射無人探測器。”

The potential future space crop is also one of the oldest.
土豆這種未來極有可能占領太空的作物，也是地球上最古老的作物之一。

Records of potato cultivation date back to 2500 BC, when the indigenous Aymara Indians farmed it in modern-day Peru and Bolivia.
種植土豆的記載可以追溯到公元前2500年，那時勤勞的艾馬拉族印第安人就在現在的秘魯和玻利維亞種植土豆了。

If the varieties selected for next month's experiment don't adapt to the desert soil, the researchers will introduce nutrients and subject them to radiation.
下個月，這些選出的土豆品種將參與實驗。如果這些土豆不能適應沙漠土壤，那么研究人員將對它們施以養分并將其置于紫外線照射下。

"If that doesn't work," Valdivia said, "we'll administer a new method the CIP is using called aeroponics."
瓦爾迪維亞說：“如果還是不行的話，我們會采用國際馬鈴薯中心使用的一種名叫‘氣栽’的新方法。”

The technique, used for cultivating plants without soil, would expose roots inside a sphere or cube that is sprayed with nutrients and contains a system for removing toxins.
這是一種無土種植技術：將植物的根部置于球體或立方體容器中。容器中原本已噴灑了營養劑，并內置了一套去除毒素的機制。

In future years, NASA plans to build a Mars research center in the Peruvian desert.
未來，美國航天局還計劃在秘魯沙漠中建造一座火星研究中心。

It would create a perfect replica of the Martian landscape and atmosphere for future research into space farming that could serve manned missions to Mars and other planets in the solar system.
該研究中心將逼真還原火星的地貌和大氣狀況，以供未來太空種植研究之用。太空種植將為探測火星等其他太陽系行星的載人任務提供補給。

英文來源：yahoo.com
譯者：心若水
審校&編輯：杜娟