By 2050, it is estimated that there will be nine billion people on Earth. New technologies will be needed to feed the world’s population, and to grow food in outer space. Climate change adds to the pressure of food scarcity. Controlled environment agriculture (CEA) uses technology to enable growers to manipulate a crop’s environment to desired conditions. Greenhouses, aquaculture, hydroponics, and aquaculture are all examples of controlled environment agriculture. The Controlled Environment Agriculture Center (CEAC) within the BE department has the potential, with the support of CALS and UA mechanisms, for developing self-support to expand to meet the demands. See an online booklet of what we do at the CEAC here.
For a full list of CEAC faculty, staff and collaborators, visit CEAC's directory.
***COVID 19 Resources: Procedure for Temporary Laboratory Closure***
Faculty with CEA Research components:
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| Dr. Joel Cuello | Dr. Gene Giacomelli | Dr. Murat Kacira | Dr. Stacy Tollefson |
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Plants will speak to you once you embrace technology and listen to the data. The mission of the Advanced Sensing & Climate Control Lab for Sustainable CEA Systems develops resource use efficient CEA systems with computer vision guided real time crop growth monitoring systems. Harnessing this technology makes for timely identification of crop health and status, to improve resource use efficiency.
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Centered on using plants to sustain a diet for astronauts, the Mar's Lunar Greenhouse employs plants and crop production for food, air revitalization, water recycling, and waste recycling for the crew. Fulfilling the requirements for of space colonization, the M-LGH aims to deliver a sustained human presence in space and aspires to bring practical commerical-ready technology to Earth's CEA forefront.
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This student-designed, and mostly student-run, controlled-environment facility is the first rooftop campus greenhouse in the nation that can produce food year-round, with 10 times the productivity of an outdoor garden. Twice a week on the roof of the student union, UA students and future commercial growers harvest cucumbers, tomatoes and bell peppers from the Rooftop Greenhouse and send the vegetables down to the Campus Pantry.
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The UAgFarm facility was developed for engineering and science based research to address challenges and help advancing technology and crop production applications with indoor growing under artificial lighting, to provide experiential educational opportunities for students, and to educate and inform growers and public on indoor growing systems.
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Our Vertical Green Box solution, aka the minimally structured, modular and prefabricated Vertical Farm, is specifically designed to usher in the transformative paradigm of the Vertical Farm that is sustainable -- economically, environmentally and socially.
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