{"id":10540,"date":"2023-11-17T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-17T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernsciences.org\/staging\/4414\/?p=10540"},"modified":"2023-11-03T09:41:27","modified_gmt":"2023-11-03T09:41:27","slug":"australian-school-students-are-experimenting-with-space-veggies-in-a-nasa-initiative","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/modernsciences.org\/staging\/4414\/australian-school-students-are-experimenting-with-space-veggies-in-a-nasa-initiative\/","title":{"rendered":"Australian school students are experimenting with \u2018space veggies\u2019 in a NASA\u00a0initiative"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n \n Growing Beyond Earth<\/a><\/span>\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n\nKim Johnson<\/a>, La Trobe University<\/a><\/em><\/span>\n\n

A pink glow is shining on the faces of enthusiastic students as they tend to plants in purpose-built grow boxes for space stations. <\/p>\n\n

These students are the first in Australia to experience Growing Beyond Earth<\/a> \u2013 a schools citizen science program from NASA and Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in the United States.<\/p>\n\n

In Australia, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria is working with the La Trobe Institute for Agriculture and Food, and Melbourne Archdiocese of Catholic Schools. The educational initiative ties into the Australian curriculum and gives students a unique introduction to gardening through science.<\/p>\n\n

In this project, students grow plants in controlled conditions to test if they would be suitable for NASA missions, to help feed a future cadre of astronauts.<\/p>\n\n

Plants evolved on Earth, so they might not grow so well in space. Before we start sending plants \u201coff-world\u201d to the Moon and Mars, we need to test their suitability. That way we can select the best for success. <\/p>\n\n

\n \"A<\/a>\n
\n Catholic Regional College students Zalaika Farrugia, Natalie Duquemin, and Hamish MacGregor with a growth chamber.<\/span>\n Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria<\/span><\/span>\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Gardening on the Moon and beyond<\/h2>\n\n

The NASA Artemis<\/a> mission aims to establish a long-term presence on the Moon and send astronauts to Mars. If all goes to plan, humans will be living and working on the Moon by 2030. <\/p>\n\n

Currently, astronauts on the International Space Station rely on a pre-packaged diet that is frequently resupplied. But in the long term, space gardens providing fresh, edible plants will be essential to maintain astronaut health and wellbeing. <\/p>\n\n

For Growing Beyond Earth, students build the \u201cgrowth habitat\u201d inside a box roughly the size of a large microwave fitted with LED lights and sensors. <\/p>\n\n

Then they plant the seeds of a leafy green called misome, which grows reliably and quickly \u2013 both on and off-Earth. <\/p>\n\n

\n \"A<\/a>\n
\n The green leafy vegetable misome grows well on Earth and in space.<\/span>\n Jacqui Martin, Shutterstock<\/a><\/span>\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n\n

The students gain valuable experience in running their own experiments, including planting the seeds in pots and using growth media that match the NASA Vegetable Production System (Veggie<\/a>). <\/p>\n\n

They monitor growth and water use, making notes about plant size, colour and fitness. Students learn what plants need, how fast they can grow, what can be recycled and how much can be harvested. Also, would anyone want to eat it?<\/p>\n\n

Students can extend their skills in a second experiment to test other plant types. So far, nearly 200 plants have been trialled and several new candidate plants, including pak choi, cress and kale, were found suitable.<\/p>\n\n

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