In 2011, Japan initiated the first "Asian Seeds" programme in space, when seeds collected from several Asian countries were transported to the International Space Station and then returned to Earth. These seeds were then used for various experiments.
The second "Asian Seeds" program is planned for Q4 2013. An experiment will be performed to grow Azuki beans for seven days in the Kibo module of the International Space Station. Astronauts will film the sprouting of Azuki beans grown in space and transmit the images to Earth. Seeds from the same seed batch have been shared with other countries in the Asia-Pacific Region, to allow students to collaborate on this project.
Participants will grow the Azuki bean seeds supplied in the same way as the astronauts on the ISS. Growth patterns of the seeds grown on Earth will be compared with the images transmitted from space. Participants can submit their recorded observations to the Kibo-ABC webpage and compare them with other people's results. These experiments will help our understanding of how the environment of micro-gravity in space affects plants, and how plants grow on Earth.
Participating countries in Asian Seeds (2013) are: Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand Thailand and Vietnam.
