You are viewing an old version of this page. View the current version.

Compare with Current View Page History

« Previous Version 13 Next »

Join us in an out-of-this-world experiment as we explore the effect of microgravity on plants. This is your chance to grow seeds in concert with astronauts aboard the International Space Station!

 

We will publish our latest announcements here. You can also follow us on Twitter at hashtag #kiwispaceseed

  • We would recommend for you to plant the seed in the same time as the astronauts would do it - we will announce on here when this happens. However if you wish to do the planting in advance, please wait until we will provide full details of the experiment - by week beginning 4/August/2013.

Overview

Late Aug/Sep astronauts aboard the International Space Station will be undertaking a plant-growth experiment with Azuki Bean seeds. The Japanese Space Agency (JAXA) has sent us some seeds from the exact same batch as those being flown into space, to give you a chance to perform your own experiments here on Earth. 

Grow your own 'space seeds' and compare the differences. 

  • How do seeds grow in space?
  • How does gravity affect seeds grown on Earth?
Follow along as the astronauts tend to the seeds on the ISS - and spot the differences and similarities with your own seeds' growth. 

 

General InformationTimeline

Jul 2013:

  • Seeds available for ordering!

Aug 2013:

  • Seeds fly up to ISS in ATV4
    Current launch target: 4 Aug 

Late-Aug/Sep 2013:

  • School Experiments
  • In-Space Experiment

 

The primary purpose of this mission is to promote the understanding of space biology.

You will learn how the sprouts of Azuki bean, Vigna angularis, grow in microgravity environment.

Partners

This program has been made possible thanks to JAXA and Kibo-ABC.

Tweets about "#kiwispaceseed"

Mission Updates

2 August: The transfer vehicle H-IIB Launch Vehicle No. 4 with KOUNOTORI4 that will take the seed to ISS is scheduled to launch on 4 August at 4:48:46 a.m., 2013, Japan time. Click here for more details.

July 29: JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata talks about the upcoming Space Seed mission.

 

July 5: Students from the from Osaka City University pretreated and planted the seeds in rockwool blocks, at the Tsukuba Space Center in Japan. JAXA engineers then assembled the components into the final flight configuration. Click here for more details.

The kit will be transferred to Tanegashima Space Center on July 15th
and be turned over to the HTV launch team after final inspection.

 

  • No labels