NASA brings LED plant lights to the space station

On December 7, foreign media reported that NASA brought LED plant lights to the International Space Station to experiment with growing high-yield and fresh vegetables in space.

It is reported that current research on edible agricultural products during space flight is limited, and people's knowledge about growing safe, acceptable and nutritious crops in microgravity environment is relatively lacking. The Veggie vegetable production system on the International Space Station provides research opportunities for the development of ready-to-eat fresh vegetables on the International Space Station.

Image source: Paixin.com genuine gallery

In this study, salad plants were planted in the Veggie system during spaceflight, with a focus on the effects of light quality and fertilizer formulation on crop morphology, edible biomass yield, microbial food safety, sensory acceptability, nutritional value, etc.

The research project is divided into two phases. The first phase will plant Mizuna mustard, a crop suitable for this study, in 28 days and 56 days respectively. The second phase focuses on the growth and cultivation of dwarf tomatoes.

On the International Space Station, research will test each crop using different ratios of red and blue light. The experiment will determine the light colors, light levels and optimal growing methods needed to grow nutritious and productive leafy green vegetables and tomatoes in space. Each crop will be grown in two separate vegetable rooms with different LED lighting conditions.

Staff will care for the plants using LED lights to help seedlings grow, provide water to the plants, thin the plants, and monitor plant health and progress by inspecting and taking photos that are passed down to teams on the ground.

After 28 days of planting, the mizuna plants are ready for harvest, and some plant leaves will be wrapped in foil and frozen for later return or analysis. Most of the remaining leaves will be measured and then sterilized by staff, who will then complete a sensory evaluation of the produce grown under both lighting conditions by tasting the produce and recording its qualities (e.g., flavor, color, appearance, aroma, texture, taste). After the evaluation is completed, the remaining product can be consumed by astronauts. (Compiled by LEDinside Irving)