First flower blooms in space

Author: newsroom  | Published: January 18, 2016

The flowering experiment will allow NASA scientists to better understand how plants grow in microgravity

For the first time ever, a flower is blooming in space on the International Space Station.

U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly tweeted a photo of one of the orange flowers, Zinnians, writing: “First ever flower grown in space makes its debut! #SpaceFlower #zinnia #YearInSpace”.

 

 

The crew has grown edible plants before, such as romaine lettuce and arugula, but zinnias are the first flowering plants to be grown bringing scientists closer to growing flowering food crops, like tomatoes, on longer space missions in the future.

The flowering experiment, called “Veggie,” will also allow NASA scientists to better understand how plants grow in microgravity.