NASA grows chrysanthemum flowers in the universe

The first five-colored daisies will bloom on the International Space Station (ISS) in two months.

NASA prepares to plant flowers on the space station

Yesterday, the US Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced that astronauts began planting Zinnia flowers, a brightly colored chrysanthemum and fast-growing on the ISS station in a named experiment. "Veggie".

According to The Christian Science Monitor, this is the first time NASA has planted flowers in the universe. The experiment will help astronauts learn how to grow other plants like tomatoes in 2017.

The experiment of growing fresh food on a space station is part of NASA's plan to find out how living organizations work in space. According to NASA, the experimental results could be the foundation for maintaining astronauts' health as they head out of the low Earth orbit, looking at meteorites and Mars.

A kind of red iridescent chrysanthemum.(Photo: All-America Selections).

"I think the source of fresh food is going to play an important role , " said Gioia Massa, a scientist at NASA's Kennedy Center, and founder of the Veggie project.

Astronauts have many food choices - from cocktail shrimp to grilled chicken - most of which are dried and frozen for long-term storage. Eaters need to mix these with water before enjoying. Fruits and vegetables are still occasionally present on the space station when there is a supply, but they run out very quickly, explains Dr. Massa.

"People go farther and farther away from Earth, the need to plant trees to get food, regenerate the air and bring in higher psychological benefits," Massa said.

With colorful, vivid colors, flowers and plants can inspire astronauts while working.Zinnia flowers grow for 60 days, twice as long as lettuce. To stimulate flowering, LED lights are turned on for 10 hours and turned off for the next 14 hours.

The astronauts started the Veggie experiment last year when they planted long red leaf lettuce in the same system currently used to grow Zinnia. Trays of water with pockets allow sowing seeds in baked clay with higher ventilation. Growing plants are illuminated by LED lights and fertilized through an automated system.

"Planting flowers is harder than growing vegetables like lettuce. Light and other environmental parameters are more decisive , " Massa said.