Preparing The Advanced Plant Habitat For Space Flight

Inside a laboratory at the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, scientists prepare Apogee wheat seeds for the science carrier, or base, of the Advanced Plant Habitat (APH).
A growing substrate called arcillite was packed down in the base and coverings were secured on top of the base. Developed by NASA and ORBITEC of Madison, Wisconsin, the APH is the largest plant chamber built for the agency. It is a fully automated plant growth facility that will be used to conduct bioscience research on the International Space Station. The APH will be delivered to the space station aboard future Commercial Resupply Services missions.

Photo credit: NASA/Bill White Larger image