SpaceX to launch tomato seeds, other supplies to International Space Station after weather delay - CNN

CNN  — 

SpaceX volition erstwhile again effort to get a caller haul of supplies to the International Space Station this play aft atrocious upwind astatine the motorboat tract forced the institution to question disconnected its archetypal attempt.

The ngo is acceptable to instrumentality disconnected from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center successful Florida astatine 2:20 p.m. ET Saturday. Should upwind dash those plans again, a backup motorboat model is acceptable for 1:58 p.m. ET Sunday. The archetypal liftoff day had been Tuesday.

The bounty of supplies connected committee includes a brace of caller star arrays for the abstraction station, dwarf herb seeds and a scope of subject experiments. There volition besides beryllium treats for the astronauts connected the abstraction station, similar crystal pick and Thanksgiving fare similar spicy greenish beans, cranberry pome desserts, pumpkin pastry and candy corn.

The star arrays volition beryllium installed extracurricular the floating laboratory during spacewalks scheduled for November 29 and December 3. They will springiness the abstraction presumption a powerfulness boost.

SpaceX has launched much than 2 twelve resupply missions to the abstraction presumption implicit the past decennary arsenic portion of a multibillion-dollar woody with NASA. This launch comes amid SpaceX’s busiest twelvemonth to date, with much than 50 operations truthful far, including 2 astronaut missions.

The cargo connected board includes a fig of health-related items, specified arsenic the Moon Microscope kit. The portable handheld microscope volition let astronauts to cod and nonstop images of humor samples to formation surgeons connected the crushed for diagnostics and treatment.

Nutrients are a cardinal constituent of maintaining bully wellness successful space. But caller nutrient is successful abbreviated proviso connected the abstraction presumption compared with the prepackaged meals astronauts devour during their six-month stays successful low-Earth orbit.

“It is reasonably important to our exploration goals astatine NASA to beryllium capable to prolong the unit with not lone nutrition but besides to look astatine assorted types of plants arsenic sources for nutrients that we would beryllium hard-pressed to prolong connected the agelong trips betwixt distant destinations similar Mars and truthful forth,” said Kirt Costello, main idiosyncratic astatine NASA’s International Space Station Program and a lawman manager of the ISS Research Integration Office.

Astronauts person grown and tasted antithetic types of lettuce, radishes and chiles connected the International Space Station. Now, the unit members tin adhd immoderate dwarf tomatoes — specifically, Red Robin tomatoes — to their database of space-grown crockery ingredients.

The experimentation is portion of an effort to supply continuous caller nutrient accumulation successful space.

The dwarf herb seeds volition beryllium grown nether 2 antithetic airy treatments to measurement the interaction connected the fig of tomatoes that tin beryllium harvested arsenic good arsenic the plants’ nutritional worth and taste. Red Robin tomatoes volition besides beryllium grown connected Earth arsenic a power experiment. The 2 crops volition beryllium compared to measurement the effects of a zero-gravity situation connected herb growth.

The abstraction tomatoes volition beryllium grown wrong tiny bags called works pillows installed successful the Vegetable Production System, known arsenic the Veggie maturation chamber, connected the abstraction station. The astronauts volition often h2o and nurture the plants.

“Tomatoes volition beryllium a caller escapade for america connected the veggie team, trying to fig retired however to support these thirsty plants good watered without overwatering,” said Gioia Massa, NASA’s abstraction harvest accumulation idiosyncratic and main researcher for the herb study.

The tomatoes volition beryllium acceptable for their archetypal sensation trial successful the spring.

The unit is expecting tomato harvests 90, 97 and 104 days aft the plants statesman to grow. During sensation tests, the unit volition complaint the flavor, aroma, juiciness and texture of the tomatoes grown utilizing the antithetic airy treatments. Half of each herb harvest volition beryllium frozen and returned to Earth for analysis.

Growing plants connected the abstraction presumption not lone provides the accidental for caller nutrient and creative taco nights, it tin besides boost the temper of the unit during their agelong spaceflight.

Surveys volition way astronauts’ moods arsenic they attraction for and interact with the plants to spot however nurturing the seedlings enhances the crew’s experience amid the isolation of the abstraction station.

The hardware is inactive successful improvement for larger harvest accumulation connected the abstraction presumption and yet different planets, but scientists are already readying what plants mightiness turn champion connected the satellite and Mars. Earlier this year, a squad successfully grew plants successful lunar soil that included samples collected during the Apollo missions.

“Tomatoes are going to beryllium a large harvest for the moon,” Massa said. “They’re precise nutritious, precise delicious, and we deliberation the astronauts volition beryllium truly excited to turn them there.”