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Written By:
James Owen
for National Geographic News
Published December 7, 2012
"When researchers sent plants to the International Space Station in 2010, the flora wasn't meant to be decorative. Instead, the seeds of these small, white flowers—called Arabidopsis thaliana—were the subject of an experiment to study how plant roots developed in a weightless environment."
Gravity plays an important role in root growth, but these scientists have discovered that their space plants did not require gravity to survive. This ability is thought to be related to a plant's inherent ability to orient itself as it grows. The germinated seeds on the International Space Station grew roots that behaved normally as if on Earth, sprouting away from the seed to seek nutrients and water in exactly the same way observed with gravity.
"There's really no impediment to growing plants in microgravity, such as on a long-term mission to Mars, or in reduced-gravity environments such as in specialized greenhouses on Mars or the moon," noted plant geneticist and study co-author Anna-Lisa Paul.
This article "grew" to my interest since the availability of plants without gravity (plants in space) will undoubtly aid in the future if (or when) humans decide to spread outside of Earth. Of course, this may not be something to look forward to but it does place relief in peoples' minds.
"When researchers sent plants to the International Space Station in 2010, the flora wasn't meant to be decorative. Instead, the seeds of these small, white flowers—called Arabidopsis thaliana—were the subject of an experiment to study how plant roots developed in a weightless environment."
Gravity plays an important role in root growth, but these scientists have discovered that their space plants did not require gravity to survive. This ability is thought to be related to a plant's inherent ability to orient itself as it grows. The germinated seeds on the International Space Station grew roots that behaved normally as if on Earth, sprouting away from the seed to seek nutrients and water in exactly the same way observed with gravity.
"There's really no impediment to growing plants in microgravity, such as on a long-term mission to Mars, or in reduced-gravity environments such as in specialized greenhouses on Mars or the moon," noted plant geneticist and study co-author Anna-Lisa Paul.
This article "grew" to my interest since the availability of plants without gravity (plants in space) will undoubtly aid in the future if (or when) humans decide to spread outside of Earth. Of course, this may not be something to look forward to but it does place relief in peoples' minds.
- Andrew
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