Scientists work out way to make Mars surface fit for farming

Aerogel sheet mimics Earth's greenhouse effect and could help to create fertile oases

For future astronauts bound for Mars it will surely rank as a positive: when they sit down to dinner on the barren red planet, they should at least have plenty of greens.

The harsh environment on Mars has always made growing food a daunting prospect, but scientists believe they have cracked the problem with sheets of material that can transform the cold, arid surface into land fit for farming.