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Photo credit: NASA/Loral O’Hara
Seeds that were flown into space last year will be sown on Earth this spring as part of a culture and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) study.
Five varieties of heirlooms seeds from the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma—including isito (Choctaw sweet potato squash), tobi (Smith peas), tanchi tohbi (flour corn), tvnishi (lamb quarter), and chukfi peas—were flown there International Space Station (ISS) in November 2023.
The seeds, which together weighed just over a pound (500 grams), were released Microgravity and space radiation for more than five months, return to Earth in April 2024.
The project, called the Choctaw Heirloom Seed Investigation, aims to inspire Native American youth to pursue careers in STEM fields a statement out of NASA.
Related: Scientists are growing the first plants in lunar soil
Students from the Jones Academy Native American boarding school in Oklahoma will be planting the seeds next spring in the school’s Growing Hope Garden together with a control group of the same seed varieties that did not travel Space and back.
As part of the experiment, students are asked to make a prediction about the growth of the two groups of seeds, make observations, and compare them Growth of plants to test their hypotheses.
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“This project strengthens Indigenous culture and voices in a society where Indigenous people are underrepresented in STEM fields,” it said a statement about the experiment. “This research aims to inspire local youth to pursue careers in STEM fields.”
The journey of seeds into space and subsequent garden experiments are also integrated into the middle school STEM Curriculum that enables even more students to benefit from research and learn more about the impacts of space.
