Science and Technology Daily News (Reporter Liu Xia) According to a recent report by CNN, NASA flight engineers recently unplugged 20 radishes grown in the advanced plant cultivation environment of the International Space Station. The foil is wrapped so that it can be refrigerated and sent back to the earth next year.
Researchers say this result has sowed the seeds of hope for food production during longer-term moon and Mars trips.
According to an instruction issued by NASA, it is the first time that radishes have been successfully grown and harvested in a zero-gravity environment. The previously successfully harvested agricultural products include red long-leaf lettuce, green lettuce, Chinese cabbage, lentils, and mustard greens.
It is reported that astronauts have planted 15 kinds of plants on the International Space Station, including 8 green leafy plants.
NASA has also tested more than 100 crops on Earth to determine the candidate crops that will be tested in space in the next step.
In addition, astronauts will repeat the carrot experiment in space, plant and harvest another round of carrots to provide more usable data.
Nicole Dufour, the senior plant cultivation environment project manager at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, said: "I have been involved in this project from the very beginning, and what we have learned will help astronauts to travel to and from Mars safely."
Researchers also planted radishes as a control group at the Kennedy Space Center, which is expected to be harvested on December 15.
They will compare the carrots grown in space and the earth to test the extent to which space agricultural products can provide the minerals and nutrients needed by astronauts on longer-term space missions.
For astronauts who perform long-term missions, radishes have many advantages as a food source: radishes grow fast and can be fully mature in 27 days.
In addition, this kind of root vegetables does not require much maintenance during the growth process.
Carl Hasenstein, the lead researcher of the project, said that the researchers will analyze the impact of carbon dioxide on radishes and how these vegetables obtain minerals.
Du Fuer said: "Growing a range of crops helps us determine which plants can thrive in microgravity and provide the best varieties and balanced nutrition for astronauts performing long-term space missions."