(ECNS) - Chinese astronauts have harvested cherry tomatoes and other vegetables aboard the country's space station, marking the latest step in efforts to develop space-based food production, state media reported.
Footage from cameras aboard the spacecraft showed astronauts collecting and packaging tomatoes grown in orbit, with one crew member describing them as "bright in color" with "a light fragrance."
The latest harvest builds on earlier experiments in space cultivation. China first tested growing vegetables in orbit in 2016, when astronauts aboard the Tiangong-2 space lab grew lettuce, though it was not consumed in space.
In September 2022, astronauts on the Shenzhou-14 mission became the first Chinese crew to eat vegetables they had grown in orbit. The mission completed full growth cycles for crops, including wheat and dwarf tomatoes. It also achieved the first full life-cycle cultivation of rice in space, from seed to seed.
Subsequent crews have continued to expand the range of crops grown aboard the station, including lettuce varieties and cherry tomatoes. More recently, astronauts have experimented with sweet potatoes, with samples returned to Earth for further study.
Space-based plant cultivation is aimed at supporting long-duration missions by providing food and aiding oxygen and water recycling, while advancing research for deep-space exploration. Microgravity may also alter plant growth cycles, offering insights into plant biology and potential applications on Earth.
(By Zhang Jiahao)
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