Tampa’s Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI) has become one of the first sites on Earth to place a new Moon Tree on display, unveiling the tree in honor of the 55th anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon, according to a news release.
The new Moon Tree was grown from a seed that flew around the Moon aboard the Artemis 1 spacecraft in 2022. The seed traveled 270,000 miles aboard Artemis 1 and after returning to earth, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service planted it and nurtured it until it was large and healthy enough to be delivered to MOSI.
The Moon Tree idea originally “sprouted” during the Apollo era. NASA astronaut Stuart Roosa was a former smokejumper (forest firefighter). He carried hundreds of tree seeds in special containers aboard his Apollo 14 spacecraft, which circled the moon in 1971, the release says. Many of those seeds were grown into trees that were planted around the world, giving people on earth a closer connection to its nearest neighbor in space.
NASA is working to place similar Moon Trees in other locations across the country; MOSI was the first selected.
Guests at the museum can see the sweetgum tree growing in MOSI’s Science Park, near the LIVECycles Butterfly Garden, Sky Trail Ropes Course and SciLinx Mini-Golf course.
Published July 31, 2024
