What you see in the photo is the first flower that grew in space! Some time ago, we already reported that lettuce and wheat have grown on the International Space Station (ISS), and this is the first time that a flower has grown and bloomed. It is an orange zinnia with 13 petals.
Orange zinnia it was a very special honor. She became the first flower to grow in space (at the International Space Station, ISS) and thus joins the list of firsts in space, Laika, Gagarin, Tereshkova, Sputnik, salads ... The news was sent to Earth by an American astronaut Scott Kelly, who wrote on Twitter: "Meet the first flower that grew in space! Yes, there are other forms of life in the universe!”
The first "space" flower meanwhile, she has already gone on a space walk. Us she chose this type of flower for practical and not so much aesthetic reasons, as it was supposed to help scientists explain, how plants grow in zero gravity or microgravity. It is part of the preparation for the eventuality mission to Mars. Of course, the zinnia on the International Space Station will not only be for research purposes, NASA is confident that it will also have a positive impact on well-being of astronauts.
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The first prospects were not good, because even in December its leaves were wrinkled and drooping. The fact is that they are flowers that are grown under red, green and blue LED bulbs, much more sensitive to circumstances than lettuce, and they also grow longer (from 60 to 80 days), but a positive outcome predicts the next step: tomato plantation on the ISS.
