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Orbiting Ornamental01-19-16 | News

Orbiting Ornamental
A Zinnia Blooms in Space

This 13-pedal zinnia, grown from seed in zero gravity, is the first plant to have blossomed on the International Space Station. Technically, you might say it's the first flower grown by Earthlings in space to have blossomed outside the planet's biosphere.

Not everything is hi-tech aboard the International Space Station (ISS). NASA has been doing some experimental gardening in what it calls the "VEG-01 module." Red romaine lettuce has already been grown in VEG-01, and eaten aboard ISS.

On Jan. 16, 2016, U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly posted a picture of a blossoming zinnia on his Twitter account. It's not just that Scott likes this colorful plant in the daisy family. He posted it because the zinnia was the first plant to blossom aboard the International Space Station, which makes it a historic flower, another space first for terrestrial-based man.

NASA says its VEG-01 module garden experiments are for raising edible and ornamental plants in space. On the menu are Chinese cabbage and eventually dwarf tomato plants.

Fun facts: ISS was launched into orbit on Nov. 20, 1998. It is the largest artificial body in orbit and can often be seen without the aid of a telescope. ISS is traveling 17,136 mph, that's 285.6 miles/per sec. It orbits the Earth 15.54 times every 24 hours.