SpaceX flew four astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) Wednesday to assist NASA with various studies on the floating laboratory, including growing plants and vegetables without soil.
The astronauts will conduct scientific experiments, including plant-growing techniques using hydroponic (liquid-based) and aeroponic (air-based) techniques.
Astronauts to Cultivate Soil-less Plants In Mars
The Crew-4 astronauts will conduct several tests aboard the International Space Station. Their efforts are in line with their main goal.
Aeroponic (air-based) and hydroponic (liquid-based) plants are tested in some of their plant-based research.
"Right now, space-based plant systems are limited and rely on particulate media-based systems to achieve water and nutrients. Due to volume, containment, restoration, and sanitary issues, it does not scale well in space," NASA said via Mashable.
The four #Crew4 astronauts walk out from the Neil Armstrong Operations & Checkout Building at @NASAKennedy ahead of their journey to the launchpad: pic.twitter.com/ocyKNVedJE
— NASA (@NASA) April 27, 2022
The Crew-4 will also take part in the "Protein-Based Artificial Retina Manufacturing" project and air-based veggies.
The experiment will see if it is feasible to grow artificial human cells in the retina of bacteriorhodopsin.
Astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor harvests red Russian kale and dragoon lettuce from Veggie on Nov. 28, 2018, just in time for Thanksgiving. The crew got to enjoy a mid-afternoon snack with balsamic vinegar, and Auñón-Chancellor reported the lettuce was "delicious!"
Other Space Studies at the ISS
The International Space Station already includes a space garden known as Veggie (Vegetable Production System), which NASA astronauts and other space partners use to research plant development in microgravity.
The space garden has been assisting NASA with plant studies for the past few years. Now, the new Crew-4 plans to take space plant research to new heights by cultivating flora on Mars.
The Crew-4 astronauts will continue continuing research experiments and technological demonstrations aboard the ISS as members of Expedition 67, as well as helping to maintain the station running.
When Crew-4 launches, they kick off 6 months of science aboard the @Space_Station! From studies of using aeroponic techniques to grow plants to testing tools to diagnose medical conditions in space, here’s what’s in store for the astronauts: https://t.co/flEmfciTc3 pic.twitter.com/mkzlGjHmMD
— ISS Research (@ISS_Research) April 19, 2022
SpaceX Freedom Crew's Arrival
Meanwhile, NASA Spaceflight said that the Dragon C212 Freedom crew has docked at the International Space Station. Dragon, which is flying the SpaceX Crew-4 mission, was launched on Wednesday and took a little over 16 hours to reach the orbiting laboratory.
Crew-4, also known as United States Crew Vehicle (USCV)-4, is the Commercial Crew Program's fourth operational Crew Dragon mission (CCP). Dragon is taking a crew of four astronauts into orbit, much like the past operational Crew Dragon flights.
NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Robert Hines, and Jessica Watkins, as well as Samantha Cristoforetti of the European Space Agency, are participating in this mission (ESA). The Commander and Pilot are Lindgren and Hines, respectively, with Mission Specialists Cristoforetti and Watkins.
Crew-4's mission began on Wednesday with a successful launch from Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) on a flight-proven Falcon 9 rocket. The rocket's second stage carried Dragon to orbit after the first stage booster, B1067-4, safely landed on SpaceX's Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ship (ASDS), A Shortfall of Gravitas.
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