Skip Navigation

Plants in Space

Author(s): Gregory L. Vogt, EdD, Nancy P. Moreno, PhD, and Stefanie Countryman, MBA
Plants in Space

Confocal microscopic image showing the root cap of a maize root tip.
© Jim Haseloff, Wellcome Images. CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0

Green plants’ atmospheric recycling and food production properties make them very important to long-duration missions. Students conduct three scientific investigations to learn how light, gravity and microgravity affect the growth of Brassica rapa roots (Wisconsin Fast Plants®).

Activities in the Plants in Space Teacher's Guide are designed for use with multiple grade levels, and as observation for K–2 students.

Developed and conducted in collaboration with BioServe Space Technologies of the University of Colorado, National Space Biomedical Research Institute, and the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Download: Plants in Space Teacher's Guide Download: Classroom Slides


Funded by the following grant(s)

National Space Biomedical Research Institute

National Space Biomedical Research Institute

This work was supported by National Space Biomedical Research Institute through NASA cooperative agreement NCC 9-58.


Houston Endowment Inc.

Houston Endowment Inc.

Foundations for the Future: Capitalizing on Technology to Promote Equity, Access and Quality in Elementary Science Education; Opening Pathways for Teacher Instructional Opportunities in Natural Sciences


Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Science Education Leadership Fellows Program
Grant Numbers: 51006084, 51004102, 51000105