Watkins and Hines with XROOTS

In this image from June 24, 2022, NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Bob Hines, part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4, work on the XROOTS space botany investigation, which used the International Space Station’s (ISS) Veggie facility to test soilless methods to grow plants. The space agricultural study could enable production of crops on a larger scale to sustain crews on future space explorations farther away from Earth and could enhance cultivation of plants in terrestrial settings such as greenhouses, contributing to better food security for people on Earth.