In February 1971, onboard the Apollo 14 Command and Service Module Kitty Hawk, Command Module Pilot Stuart Roosa was conducting “observations, experiments, and scientific investigations” in lunar orbit, while his fellow crew members, Commander Alan Shepard and Lunar Module Pilot Edgar Mitchell explored the Fra Mauro formation on the Moon’s surface.
A statement by NASA History, on Feb. 4, recounts that 50 years ago onboard Kitty Hawk, in Roosa’s personal travel kit, was “a canister of approximately 400-500 loblolly pine, sweet gum, redwood, Douglas fir, and sycamore tree seeds.”
When the mission returned to Earth, NASA stated, the seeds were germinated and grew into what were referred to as, “Moon Trees,” which can be found around the U.S. and the world.
NASA cites acting NASA Chief Historian Brian Odom, who said in the statement: “The historic voyages of the Apollo program were about bold exploration and incredible scientific discovery.” He added, “Apollo 14 included the widest range of scientific experiments to that point in the program, but in the case of Roosa’s ‘Moon Trees,’ it was what the astronauts took with them on their lunar journey that has left such an indelible mark on the landscape back on Earth.”
According to the statement, it was a joint effort between NASA and the U.S. Forest Service, with a two-fold purpose – as part of an experiment “to determine the effects of deep space on seeds,” and also to help raise awareness about the Forest Service and particularly the “wildland forest firefighters called smokejumpers,” who jumped out of airplanes to combat the blazes.
Where did the idea come from?
According to NASA, Ed Cliff, chief of the Forest Service, came up with the Moon Tree concept.
Cliff, who was aware that Roosa, in the 1950s – before becoming a military aviator and astronaut – had served as a smokejumper, contacted the astronaut to propose the idea, NASA said.
In charge of the project, was Stan Krugman, a geneticist at the Forest Service, who selected the seeds that flew on Apollo 14 into lunar orbit, NASA said.
There was a mishap.
During decontamination processes following the mission, the canister ruptured, mixing the seeds together, and compromising the experiment’s environment, according to NASA.
Although the seeds were feared to be dead, according to NASA, “they were sent to Forest Service offices in Gulfport, Mississippi, and Placerville, California, to see if any could be germinated and grown into saplings.” Some 450 saplings were grown.
Where did the saplings go?
NASA History noted that Moon Tree saplings were “gifted to schools, universities, parks, and government offices, many as part of the U.S. bicentennial celebrations in 1976,” with locations being chosen, in part, to ensure compatibility of climate conditions to the respective tree species.
NASA cited then-President Gerald Ford, who said in a telegram to U.S. Bicentennial Moon Tree planting ceremonies: “This tree which was carried by Astronauts Stuart Roosa, Alan Shepard, and Edgar Mitchell on their mission to the Moon, is a living symbol of our spectacular human and scientific achievements. It is a fitting tribute to our national space program which has brought out the best of American patriotism, dedication, and determination to succeed.”
After decades of growth, NASA noted, trees that traveled to the Moon, which were planted beside their Earth-grown counterparts, show no differences from those that never left Earth.
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Where were they planted?
According to NASA, a “Loblolly Pine was planted at the White House, and trees were planted in Brazil, Switzerland, and presented to the Emperor of Japan, among others. Trees have also been planted in Washington Square in Philadelphia, at Valley Forge, in the International Forest of Friendship, and at various universities and NASA centers.” A sycamore Moon Tree is growing at Koch Girl Scout Camp in Cannelton, Indiana as well as Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. A list of Moon Tree locations can be found here.
There is a second generation of trees.
NASA explained that “second-generation trees, grown from Moon Tree seeds, are sometimes known as Half-Moon Trees and are also growing around the world.”
One such Half-Moon Tree can be found at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama – standing outside a building that played a key role in development of the Saturn V rocket that launched the Apollo 14 mission, NASA said.
NASA had this to say, ”All crops grown in space have Apollo 14 in their roots. Five decades after the mission that took seeds to the Moon, the trees that grew from the seeds stand as living, leafy testaments to humanity’s first voyages to the Moon, while the crops grown in space since enable the continuation of humanity’s exploration of the cosmos.”
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