This spring, Mrs. Waller’s 3rd grade Nature Nurturers Club at Wake Forest iSTEM Magnet Elementary School embarked on an out-of-this-world scientific journey by participating in the Tomatosphere program—a unique educational initiative that blends space exploration with hands-on plant science.
Tomatosphere, a free program developed by First the Seed Foundation in collaboration with the International Space Station (ISS) National Lab, engages students across North America in real scientific research. Each participating classroom receives two sets of tomato seeds: one batch that has traveled to space aboard the ISS, and a control batch that remained on Earth. The seeds are labeled only with letters, such as “A” and “B,” to ensure a blind experiment, minimizing observational bias and adding an element of mystery.
Under Mrs. Waller’s guidance, the young scientists carefully planted both sets of seeds in labeled containers and diligently recorded their observations over several weeks. They monitored germination rates, measured plant heights, noted leaf sizes and colors, and documented growth patterns. These activities not only taught them about plant biology but also introduced them to the scientific method and data analysis.
After submitting their findings to the Tomatosphere database, the students discovered which seed batch had been to space. This revelation sparked excitement and further curiosity about the effects of space travel on living organisms.
As a culminating activity, each student took home two seedlings: one that had journeyed through space and one that had not. This allowed them to continue their observations and care for the plants, fostering a deeper connection to the experiment and its implications for future space exploration.
Through the Tomatosphere program, Mrs. Waller’s 3rd grade Nature Nurturers Club not only contributed valuable data to ongoing scientific research but also gained a greater appreciation for the challenges and possibilities of growing food in space—a critical consideration for long-duration missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
