About 500 seeds of different tree species were thrown into space in 1971 that circled the Moon 34 times before returning to Earth, where they were planted at different points on the planet.
NASA has shared a map showing the locations of these “lunar trees,” which add up to 83 that reside primarily in the United States, with two in South America and one in Europe.
The collection includes redwoods, Douglas firs, sycamores, sweet gums and loblolly pines, but about a third have died since they were planted in the 1970s.
The mission was part of Apollo 14 and while astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell walked the moon, Stuart Roosa orbited the command module with the seeds containing his personal equipment.
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NASA has shared a map showing the locations of these “lunar trees,” which add up to 83 that reside primarily in the United States, with two in South America and one in Europe. Dr. Michele Tobias of the University of California Davis created a detailed map of NASA’s lunar trees (pictured)
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 14 mission, which was the third to land on the moon and the first to land on the lunar highlands.
During the mission, the seeds were sorted and sorted and the control seeds on Earth were kept for comparison.
The space seeds were placed in Rossa’s kit, but the container was opened during the decontamination procedure after the crew returned to earth, leaving many unusable for the experiment.
“The resulting seedlings were planted throughout the United States (often as part of the nation’s bicentennial in 1976) and around the world. They are presented as a tribute to astronaut Roosa and the Apollo program,” NASA shared in a statement.
About 500 seeds of different tree species were thrown into space in 1971 that circled the Moon 34 times before returning to Earth, where they were planted at different points on the planet. The image shows a sycamore sprouting from a “space seed.” It is located in 1975 in Mississippi State University
The mission was part of Apollo 14 and while astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell walked the moon, Stuart Roosa orbited the command module with the seeds containing his personal equipment.
Dr. Michele Tobias of the University of California Davis created a detailed map of lunar trees around the world.
“A few months ago I found out about Moon Trees watching an episode of Huell Howser on public television KVIE and then I visited the one on the grounds of the California State Capitol,” Tobias said in 2016.
“I later learned from my aunt that my grandfather was part of the telemetry crew that recovered the Apollo 14 mission that carried the seeds that would become the lunar trees, so there is something related to this idea “.
NASA put the seeds in the service of the U.S. Forest Service, which monitored them until they emerged, but some were not planted until years after the mission.
NASA put the seeds in the service of the U.S. Forest Service, which monitored them until they emerged, but some were not planted until years after the mission.
In a telegram at the bicentennial lunar tree planting ceremonies in the United States, then-President Gerald Ford said, “This tree that astronauts Stuart Roosa, Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell carried on their mission to the Moon, is a living symbol of our spectacular human being and scientific achievements “.
“It’s a fitting tribute to our national space program that has brought out the best in American patriotism, dedication and determination to succeed.”
However, over the years, the public forgot about the trees, along with NASA, but former astronaut David Williams made it his personal mission in 1996 to find and catalog them all.
He started with a list of 22 lunar trees and had located 80, although of those 21 have died.
Three more have recently been added to the list, bringing the total to 83, but a third is already dead.
However, William said the fate of many trees probably had nothing to do with his journey into space.
In a telegram at the bicentennial lunar tree planting ceremonies in the United States, then-President Gerald Ford said, “This tree that astronauts Stuart Roosa, Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell carried on their mission to the Moon, is a living symbol of our spectacular human being and scientific achievements
Compared to the seeds that never exploded, “there was no detectable difference, which is what anyone would have expected,” Williams told Atlas Obscura.
A Loblolly pine was planted in 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, the Valley Forge, the International Friendship Forest, and several NASA universities and centers.
Along with others at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland
The first tree on the moon, a sycamore tree, was planted in 1974 at Camp Iti Kana, a recreational site used by Mississippi Girl Scouts.
WHAT WAS THE APOLLO PROGRAM?
The NASA photo taken on July 16, 1969 shows the huge Apollo 11 Spacecraft 107 / Lunar Module S / Saturn 506 tall spacecraft launched from Pad A, Launch Complex 39. Kennedy Space Center (KSC), at 9:32 am (EDT).
Apollo was NASA’s program that launched in 1961 and reached the first man on the moon eight years later.
The first four flights tested the Apollo Program team and six of the other seven flights managed to land on the moon.
The first manned mission to the moon was Apollo 8, which circled around Christmas Eve 1968, but did not land.
The crew of Apollo 9 spent ten days orbiting the Earth and completed the first manned flight of the lunar module: the section of the Apollo rocket that would later land Neil Armstrong on the moon.
The Apollo 11 mission was the first to land on the moon on July 20, 1969.
The capsule landed in the sea of tranquility, carrying mission commander Neil Armstrong and pilot Buzz Aldrin.
Armstrong and Aldrin walked the lunar surface while Michael Collins remained in orbit around the moon.
When Armstrong became the first person to walk on the moon, he said, “This is a small step for a man; a giant leap for humanity.”
Apollo 12 landed later that year on November 19 in the Ocean of Storms, NASA writes.
Apollo 13 was to be the third mission to land on the moon, but just under 56 hours of flight, an oxygen tank explosion forced the crew to cancel the lunar landing and move to the lunar module. Aquarius to return to Earth again.
Apollo 15 was the ninth manned lunar mission in the Apollo space program, and was considered the most successful manned space flight at the time due to its long duration and greater emphasis on scientific exploration of what had been possible in previous missions.
Apollo’s last lunar landing occurred in 1972 after a total of 12 astronauts had touched the lunar surface.
Astronaut Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin unpacked lunar module experiments on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission. Photographed by Neil Armstrong, July 20, 1969