Exploring NASA’s Plant Water Management Project
21.08.2023 - 11:43
/ theunconventionalgardener.com
/ Emma Doughty
Over the past few years, experiments in the Veggie growing system have proved that astronauts can grow edible plants on the International Space Station.
“In the past, NASA has shown that plant growth in space is feasible as a food source. From a gardening perspective, it’s possible.”
However, researchers have found that successfully watering plants in zero gravity is difficult. Not only do roots grow differently in space compared to on Earth due to the difference in gravity, but air and water behave differently, too. Ensuring that plant roots get the right balance of air and water is an ongoing challenge.
But NASA is one step closer to determining the most effective watering technique after completing NASA Glenn’s Plant Water Management (PWM) project. The NASA Glenn team worked with plant biologists at the Kennedy Space Center to determine the needs of plants and issues that arise when attempting to garden on the ISS.
Together, they investigated the delivery of water throughout the plant’s entire life cycle by looking at two main ways water can reach the plant’s root zone. The first focused on the traditional manner with the use of soil. The second method involved hydroponics, where there’s no soil, and the plant sits directly in water.
The interesting thing about this research is that it didn’t use real plants. The team developed simulated plants – using felt fabric, foam, and sponges – that mirrored the root system and evaporation rate of a live plant. And they used fruit punch, containing nutrients and sugar, as the liquid for the experiment. Its colour meant it was easier to see where it was absorbed.
And that was crucial because the data collected focused on visual aspects of the experiment and how quickly the plants