Tomatoes grown on the International Space Station (ISS) will return to Earth this weekend after participating in a successful NASA project exploring the feasibility of supplying fresh food for future astronauts.
According to Metro News, on April 15 samples from a NASA mission employing SpaceX's commercial resupply services will return from the ISS.
After splashdown, the scientific samples will be flown to NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida for further analysis before the full effects of gravity set in.
Future crewed exploration missions, such as those to Mars, may need a fresh food supply in addition to the pre-packaged crew meals.
The Veg-05 experiment grew miniature tomatoes in the station's 'Veggie' facility to study the impact of light quality and fertiliser on fruit yield, microbiological safety, and nutritional value.
The Veggie vegetable-production system on the ISS offers a chance to include fresh, "pick-and-eat" vegetables into the ISS diet.
The results of this study are expected to aid in the formulation of horticultural guidelines for the mass production of safe, nutrient-rich dwarf tomato fruit to supplement a pre-packaged food diet in space.
The study was also conducted to assess the possible psychological benefits of plant cultivation for astronauts.
This experiment focused on the impact of light quality and fertiliser composition on the growth of salad plants and dwarf tomatoes produced in the 'Veggie' units during space travel.
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Plants grown in microgravity on the ISS were compared to those grown in a similar experiment on Earth.
The plants were grown in two separate 'Veggie' rooms, each with its own unique LED lighting system. Six plants were grown using "pillows," which are wicking bags filled with soilless substrate and nutrients.
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The staff spent 104 days tending to the plants, helping the seeds germinate by opening wicks, watering, thinning, pollinating, and monitoring the growth of the plants.
In addition, crew members responded to an array of questions designed to assess their emotional state over time.
