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We have exciting visuals of NASA’s missing space tomatoes — and guess what? There are two of them!
NASA shared footage of two tiny tomatoes that went missing back in 2022 after being harvested by astronaut Frank Rubio on the International Space Station. The surprise discovery in the six-bedroom complex shows just how the 17% humidity on board affects food in a Ziploc bag; Rubio had stashed the food inside temporarily, only to find it floating away later.
“In spite of being nearly a year after the initial disappearance of the tomatoes, the fruit was found in a plastic bag dehydrated and slightly squished,” NASA officials wrote in an update Thursday (Dec. 14), without disclosing the exact location of the find. “Other than some discoloration, it had no visible microbial or fungal growth.”
Rubio had previously only mentioned losing one tomato, which NASA has now clarified was grown as part of the eXposed Root On-Orbit Test System or XROOTS experiment in 2022 (not VEG-05 in 2023, as previous media coverage suggested.) “The experiment uses hydroponic and aeroponic techniques to grow plants without soil or other growth media and could provide suitable solutions for plant systems needed for future space exploration missions,” the agency added.
Two small tomatoes lost on the International Space Station in 2022 were found again, NASA revealed in December 2023. (Image credit: NASA)
While the discovery brought a lighthearted moment for Rubio, who has since returned home from his one-year mission, NASA emphasized that the true goal of growing food on the ISS is to practice techniques that could be used during future moon and Mars exploration. And there’s more than one experiment looking into providing astronauts with fresh food.
VEG-05 was testing out production of dwarf tomatoes and other foods, while the newer Planet Habitat-03 “is one of the first multi-generational plant studies aboard the space station which could help researchers assess whether genetic adaptations in one generation of plants grown in space can transfer to the next.” (Habitat-03 is currently packed onboard a SpaceX Dragon spaceship awaiting return to Earth later in the month; sadly, the more famous XROOTS tomatoes were discarded.)
And there are intangible benefits to space food as well. “The benefits of growing plants in space don’t stop there,” NASA officials added. “Astronauts report there are psychological benefits to time spent gardening, increasing their quality of life in space, and boosting their morale.”
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Elizabeth Howell (she/her), Ph.D., is a staff writer in the spaceflight channel since 2022 covering diversity, education and gaming as well.