The investigations flew aboard Northrop Grumman’s 24th commercial resupply mission for NASA. They examine how the space environment affects nutrition-relevant organisms, with the stated goal of supporting crew diets as missions extend farther into space. [S1]
NASA’s Veg-06 studies alfalfa and its interaction in space with root bacteria that convert atmospheric nitrogen into a form plants can use. It also examines reduced lignin, a cell-wall material that helps plants grow upright on Earth; NASA says lower levels in microgravity could make plant parts easier to recycle for future generations. [S1]
A Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency experiment, Space Surface Spirulina, is testing algae growth on a thin-film surface rather than the water tanks typically used for spirulina. NASA describes the approach as a way to produce protein-rich food while conserving water and generating fresh oxygen aboard spacecraft. [S1]
The report also connects the research to students’ work on Earth: Canada’s Tomatosphere 9 is exposing 1.8 million tomato seeds to microgravity, with seeds planned for distribution to schools in the United States and Canada after their return. Students are to compare planted space-exposed seeds with ground controls in a blind study. [S1]
Source documents
- Nutrition Research Arrives Aboard Space Stationhttps://www.nasa.gov/missions/station/iss-research/nutrition-research-arrives-aboard-space-station/