One of NASA's goals is to understand how living organisms sense and respond to mechanical stimuli, such as gravity. Plants provide a valuable model for studying gravity responses because of their dramatic response to being placed horizontal relative to the force of gravity, Braam said. The root senses gravity because there are heavy particles in the plant, such as organelles within the cell that are full of starch that fall in the direction of the gravity source. This movement somehow tells the plant which direction to grow, she said. In the absence of gravity, plant roots grow in random directions, Braam said.
Space flight is nothing new for arabidopsis.
The plants are veterans of several NASA missions. Someday gardens in space may be necessary for astronauts who plan to spend extensive time at the space station. Therefore, understanding how gravity and the absence of gravity affect plant growth and development is critical. If space gardens do take off, they may give new meaning to eating light.