We Finally Saw That Missing Space Tomato and Wish We Hadn't
Dec 15, 2023 - gizmodo.com
Two missing tomatoes from NASA's Veg-05 experiment on the International Space Station (ISS) were found squished in a ziplock bag, ending rumors that astronaut Frank Rubio had eaten them. The tomatoes, part of a project studying the growth of fruits and vegetables in space, were harvested by Rubio in 2022 and later went missing, sparking playful accusations from crewmates that Rubio had eaten them. The mystery was solved when astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli revealed the tomatoes had been found during a livestream in December.
Despite the extensive search for the tomatoes, they were discarded upon discovery and will not be returned to Earth for analysis. The Veg-05 experiment, which used the ISS's Veggie facility to grow dwarf tomatoes, aimed to study the impact of light quality and fertilizer on fruit growth, microbial food safety, nutritional value, and taste.
Key takeaways:
Two missing tomatoes were found on the International Space Station, ending rumors that an astronaut had eaten them.
The tomatoes were part of NASA’s Veg-05 experiment, which focuses on growing fruits and vegetables in space.
NASA astronaut Frank Rubio, who was accused of eating the tomatoes, was exonerated when the tomatoes were found.
The Veg-05 experiment studies the impact of light quality and fertilizer on the growth of fruit, its microbial food safety, nutritional value, and taste.
