Space Flight Cultivation for Radish (Raphanus sativus) in the Advanced Plant Habitat

Summary

Abstract In preparation of a flight experiment, ground-based studies for optimizing the growth of radishes (Raphanus sativus) were conducted at the ground-based Advanced Plant Habitat (APH) unit at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Florida. The APH provides a large, environmentally controlled chamber that has been used to grow various plants, such as Arabidopsis, wheat, peppers, and now radish. In support of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)'s goals to provide astronauts with fresh vegetables and fruits in a confined space, it is important to extend the cultivation period to produce substantial biomass. We selected Raphanus sativus cv. Cherry Belle as test variety both for preliminary tests and flight experiments because it provides edible biomass in as few as four weeks,