{"id":448223,"date":"2022-05-16T23:00:17","date_gmt":"2022-05-16T20:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/plants-can-grow-on-the-moon-but-dont-expect-a-robust-garden-just-yet\/"},"modified":"2022-05-16T23:00:17","modified_gmt":"2022-05-16T20:00:17","slug":"plants-can-grow-on-the-moon-but-dont-expect-a-robust-garden-just-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/plants-can-grow-on-the-moon-but-dont-expect-a-robust-garden-just-yet\/","title":{"rendered":"#Plants can grow on the moon but don\u2019t expect a robust garden just yet"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4e30e334696\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4e30e334696\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/plants-can-grow-on-the-moon-but-dont-expect-a-robust-garden-just-yet\/#%E2%80%9CPlants_can_grow_on_the_moon_but_dont_expect_a_robust_garden_just_yet%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;Plants can grow on the moon but don\u2019t expect a robust garden just yet&#8221;<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/plants-can-grow-on-the-moon-but-dont-expect-a-robust-garden-just-yet\/#Planting_on_the_moon\" >Planting on the moon<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/plants-can-grow-on-the-moon-but-dont-expect-a-robust-garden-just-yet\/#From_seeds_to_plants\" >From seeds to plants<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/plants-can-grow-on-the-moon-but-dont-expect-a-robust-garden-just-yet\/#Sowing_seeds_for_future_research\" >Sowing seeds for future research<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CPlants_can_grow_on_the_moon_but_dont_expect_a_robust_garden_just_yet%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;Plants can grow on the moon but don\u2019t expect a robust garden just yet&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Scientists say that plants can grow on the moon, but they might not be as plentiful as once hoped.<\/p>\n<p>As part of an ongoing effort to study samples from space, Apollo astronauts previously collected samples of lunar surface material, known as regolith, and brought them back to Earth.<\/p>\n<p>NASA says that now, 50 years later, three of those samples were used to grow plants for the first time successfully.<\/p>\n<p>Researchers at the University of Florida grew Arabidopsis thaliana in the nutrient-poor lunar regolith. Arabidopsis thaliana is a well-researched small flowing plant native to Eurasia and Africa. They are a relative of mustard greens and other cruciferous vegetables.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis research is critical to NASA\u2019s long-term human exploration goals as we\u2019ll need to use resources found on the Moon and Mars to develop food sources for future astronauts living and operating in deep space,\u201d said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. \u201cThis fundamental plant growth research is also a key example of how NASA is working to unlock agricultural innovations that could help us understand how plants might overcome stressful conditions in food-scarce areas here on Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When starting the research, University of Florida scientists worked to find answers to two crucial questions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe first asked the question of whether plants can grow in regolith. And second, how might that one day help humans have an extended stay on the moon,\u201d said Robert Ferl, a professor in the Horticultural <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/sciencee\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"5\" title=\"Science\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Science<\/a>s department at the University of Florida.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-05.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Placing a plant grown during the experiment in a vial for eventual genetic analysis.\" class=\"wp-image-22287044\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-05.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-05.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-05.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Placing a plant grown during the experiment in a vial for eventual genetic analysis.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">UF\/IFAS photo by Tyler Jones<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Planting_on_the_moon\"><\/span>Planting on the moon<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The answer to the University of Florida scientists\u2019 first question was a resounding \u2018yes.\u2019 Plants can grow in the moon\u2019s soil.<\/p>\n<p>NASA says that while plants did grow, they were not as robust as plants grown in Earth soil or even as those in the control group grown in a lunar simulant made from volcanic ash.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo explore further and to learn about the solar system we live in, we need to take advantage of what\u2019s on the moon, so we don\u2019t have to take all of it with us,\u201d said Jacob Bleacher, the Chief Exploration Scientist supporting NASA\u2019s Artemis program at NASA Headquarters in Washington.<\/p>\n<p>NASA hopes that when it sends robots to the moon\u2019s south pole, they will find water that future astronauts can use.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat\u2019s more, growing plants is the kind of thing we\u2019ll study when we go. So, these studies on the ground lay the path to expand that research by the next humans on the moon,\u201d Bleacher said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-03-1.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Rob Ferl, left, and Anna-Lisa Paul looking at the plates filled part with lunar soil and part with control soils, now under LED growing lights. At the time, the scientists did not know if the seeds would even germinate in lunar soil.\" class=\"wp-image-22287159\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-03-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-03-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-03-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Rob Ferl, left, and Anna-Lisa Paul looking at the plates filled part with lunar soil and part with control soils, now under LED growing lights. At the time, the scientists did not know if the seeds would even germinate in lunar soil.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">UF\/IFAS photo by Tyler Jones<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"From_seeds_to_plants\"><\/span>From seeds to plants<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The team of scientists used samples from Apollo 11, 12 and 17.<\/p>\n<p>A gram of the regolith was allotted for each plant, and the team added water and seeds to the samples. The terrarium boxes were then placed in a clean room, and researchers added nutrient solution daily.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter two days, they started to sprout!\u201d said Anna-Lisa Paul, a professor in Horticultural Sciences at the University of Florida. \u201cEverything sprouted. I can\u2019t tell you how astonished we were! Every plant \u2013 whether in a lunar sample or in a control \u2013 looked the same up until about day six.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Scientists say that after day six, it was clear that the plants were not as robust as the control group plants growing in volcanic ash, and the plants were growing differently depending on which type of sample.<\/p>\n<p>The plants were said to have grown more slowly and had stunted roots. Some even had stunted leaves and sported reddish pigmentation.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-02.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Plants in lab\" class=\"wp-image-22287232\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-02.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-02.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-02.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>By day 16, there were clear physical differences between plants grown in the volcanic ash lunar simulant, left, compared with those grown in the lunar soil, right.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">UF\/IFAS photo by Tyler Jones<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The plants were harvested after 20 days, just before the plants started to flower.<\/p>\n<p>After researchers studied the proteins within the plants, they found patterns of genes were under stress and reacted the way they\u2019d seen when grown in harsh environments.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, the plants reacted differently depending on the sample and which moon area was used. Researchers said that the plants grown in Apollo 11 samples were not as robust as the other two sets.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Sowing_seeds_for_future_research\"><\/span>Sowing seeds for future research<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>While the plants weren\u2019t as strong as they hoped, the research will help to study the lunar regolith further and help them understand where to find the best soil to plant on the moon.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot only is it pleasing for us to have plants around us, especially as we venture to new destinations in space, but they could provide supplemental nutrition to our diets and enable future human exploration,\u201d said Sharmila Bhattacharya, program scientist with NASA\u2019s Biological and Physical Sciences (BPS) Division. \u201cPlants are what enable us to be explorers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Pieces of the moon will help this mission identify the growth of plants and future other\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxweather.com\/earth-space\/50-year-old-frozen-apollo-17-samples-nasa\">future missions<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-01-1-1.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Plant in lab\" class=\"wp-image-22287236\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-01-1-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-01-1-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-01-1-1.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Scientists at the University of Florida are the first to grow plants in soil from the Moon. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">UF\/IFAS photo by Tyler Jones<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/05\/16\/plants-can-grow-on-the-moon-but-dont-expect-a-robust-garden-just-yet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Plants can grow on the moon but don\u2019t expect a robust garden just yet&#8221; Scientists say that plants can grow on the moon, but they might not be as plentiful as once hoped. As part of an ongoing effort to study samples from space, Apollo astronauts previously collected samples of lunar surface material, known as&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":448224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/moon-plants-comp-1.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[129188,5025,5026,9724],"class_list":["post-448223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-5-16-22","tag-moon","tag-nasa","tag-study-says"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=448223"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448223\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/448224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=448223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=448223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=448223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}