Dr. Andrew Armacost, President | University of North Dakota
Dr. Andrew Armacost, President | University of North Dakota
A research team from the University of North Dakota (UND) is collaborating with SafetySpect Inc., a Grand Forks-based company, on a NASA-funded project to improve plant monitoring in space. The initiative, named “MoonLight,” aims to create an autonomous platform for sensing plant health in environments such as the International Space Station, Lunar Gateway, and potential Mars habitats.
SafetySpect Inc. received a $150,000 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I award for the project, with UND participating as a research partner through a subaward. The collaboration combines SafetySpect’s work in optical sensing and artificial intelligence with UND’s experience in autonomous systems, sensor technologies, and space science.
Hossein Kashani Zadeh, assistant professor of Mechanical Engineering at UND, serves as the university’s principal investigator. Doctoral students Abdolrahim Zandi from Biomedical Engineering and Gilbert Cauthorn from Space Studies are also contributing to the interdisciplinary effort.
“We’re proud to support this groundbreaking effort in collaboration with SafetySpect,” said Zadeh. “The project leverages UND’s expertise in advanced sensing technologies and aligns with our broader research goals in environmental monitoring and space systems engineering.”
The MoonLight system will use hyperspectral reflectance imaging, hyperspectral fluorescence imaging, Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), and real-time sensors that track carbon dioxide levels, humidity, temperature, and light intensity. This combination allows for early detection of plant stress, disease, or nutrient deficiencies without damaging the plants. The overall goal is to make food production more sustainable in controlled space settings.
“An early plant stress sensing system can have a transformational impact on space agriculture, where growing conditions are extreme, resources are limited, and failure is costly,” said Fartash Vasefi, chief technology officer of SafetySpect.
“We are grateful for UND’s partnership and the exceptional expertise their team brings to this mission. From cutting-edge sensor research to access to one-of-a-kind facilities such as the inflatable lunar habitat, UND provides an unparalleled environment for innovation. Their interdisciplinary approach and commitment to advancing space agriculture are essential to helping us deliver a system that can meet the rigorous demands of extraterrestrial food production. We believe these developments can have a significant positive impact in vertical farming here on earth.”
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