Now Reading: Indian-origin NASA astronaut Anil Menon harvests vegetables in space
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Indian-origin NASA astronaut Anil Menon harvests vegetables in space
NASA astronaut Anil Menon harvested and cooked fresh greens grown aboard the International Space Station, sharing a video on X. He and fellow astronaut Jessica Meir collected kale and wasabi mustard greens…
NASA astronaut Anil Menon harvested and cooked fresh greens grown aboard the International Space Station, sharing a video on X. He and fellow astronaut Jessica Meir collected kale and wasabi mustard greens cultivated for about a month inside NASA's Veggie plant-growth chamber, then prepared them as a space-grown meal.
The experiment studies how plants respond to microgravity, aiming to support future long-duration missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond. Fresh vegetables could supplement packaged meals, add nutrients, and provide a psychological boost for astronauts on months-long missions, while also reducing the need to ship food from Earth.
Menon praised the NASA Veggie team for guidance. He is also scheduled for a spacewalk with astronaut Sophie Adenot on August 18 to replace a space-to-ground antenna for high-rate communications.
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Growing fresh food in space tackles two major constraints: the high cost of launching supplies, about Rs 7 lakh per kilogram to low Earth orbit, and the psychological toll of eating only pre-packaged meals on multi-year voyages. NASA's Veggie facility has previously grown lettuce and radishes, but this is the first harvest of leafy greens by an Indian-origin astronaut aboard the ISS. Success here could influence how future missions to the Moon or Mars plan their food systems. The next step is scaling up the chamber and testing crops that require minimal water and energy.
Next watch: Menon's spacewalk on August 18 will test how well astronauts can perform maintenance tasks during long-duration missions.
Source: ndtv.com
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