NASA will begin growing plants on the Moon in 2015. Plants to go will also include basil and radishes.

NASA will begin growing plants on the Moon in 2015. Basil and radish will be among the plants to go. The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will start a new experiment with 'detached habitat' units that will be sent from Earth to the Moon in 2015. The habitats, which will weigh 1 kg each, will be used to analyze the living conditions in the potential colony for humanity dreaming of living on the Moon. Basil and radishes will also be among the plants that will go to the moon.
NASA will begin growing plants on the Moon in 2015 to take humanity's plans to colonize Space one step further.

The self-sustaining habitats that will be sent to the Moon by commercial spacecraft will try to keep up with life on Earth's satellite. Receivers and cameras, which will be placed in habitats that will weigh 1 kg each, will send data to Earth.

The success of the project, called the Lunar Plant Growth Habitat, will mean that it will be able to grow plants on a celestial body other than Earth for the first time, and will strengthen the potential for life on the Moon.
"If the plants survive, humans could probably survive," NASA said.

The habitats, which will contain seeds and materials to germinate, will be sent to the Moon in 2015 by a spacecraft produced by a private company called Moon Express. NASA stated that after the plants are sent to the Moon, they will receive water from the module they are in and will be regularly checked from Earth.

According to the Independent's report, Arabidopsis, basil and radish will be among the plants that will be sent to the Moon.

THE POSSIBILITY OF LIVING IN SPACE
Plants to be sent to the Moon will be observed during the 5-10 day period when growth is sufficient. During this period, the effects of factors such as gravity difference and home radiation on plants will be measured.

While the experiment will shed light on how plants will develop in different environmental conditions, it will also provide important information about the possibilities of life hidden in different parts of the Universe. How the genetic material of plants is affected by radiation and other factors will enable similar predictions to be made for humans.

According to Forbes, the cost of such an experiment for NASA would have been at least $300 million decades ago, while today the experiment's budget will be just $2 million.

 

 Prototype of the Moon Express spacecraft

 

Source : ntvmsnbc

📩 05/12/2013 11:28