Space Gardens NASA December 2024
As NASA plans missions to the Moon and Mars, one challenge is figuring out how to provide crew members with enough healthy food. Bringing along a supply for months or even years in space is impractical, and stored food can lose taste and nutritional value. Growing plants in space is one way to help solve this problem. Tending space gardens also has positive psychological effects for crew members, and plants can be part of life support systems that provide services such as producing oxygen and reducing carbon dioxide.
Growth and gravity
Plant development on Earth is strongly influenced by gravity, but exactly how that works at the molecular level is not well understood. APEX-03-1 investigated the effects of microgravity on plant development and, along with previous studies, showed that spaceflight triggers changes in the development of cell walls in plant roots. Strong cell walls provide mechanical strength needed for roots to grow, and this finding provides insight into how to develop plants that are well-adapted to space conditions.
