Inside a laboratory in the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a plant biologist harvests Outredgeous romaine lettuce growing in the Advanced Plant Habitat ground unit as the ground control portion of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment on Thursday, April 24, 2025. PH-07 was sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Inside a laboratory in the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a plant biologist harvests Outredgeous romaine lettuce growing in the Advanced Plant Habitat ground unit as the ground control portion of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment on Thursday, April 24, 2025. PH-07 was sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Plant biologists inside a laboratory in the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, prepare to harvest Outredgeous romaine lettuce growing in the Advanced Plant Habitat ground unit as the ground control portion of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment on Thursday, April 24, 2025. PH-07 was sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Plant biologists inside a laboratory in the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, prepare to harvest Outredgeous romaine lettuce growing in the Advanced Plant Habitat ground unit as the ground control portion of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment on Thursday, April 24, 2025. PH-07 was sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Inside a laboratory in the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a plant biologist harvests Outredgeous romaine lettuce growing in the Advanced Plant Habitat ground unit as the ground control portion of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment on Thursday, April 24, 2025. PH-07 was sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Space crop production scientist Oscar Monje harvests Outredgeous romaine lettuce for preflight testing of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment inside a laboratory at the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. PH-07 will be sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Space crop production scientist Oscar Monje harvests Outredgeous romaine lettuce for preflight testing of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment inside a laboratory at the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. PH-07 will be sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Space crop production scientists Oscar Monje (left) and Blake Costine harvest Outredgeous romaine lettuce for preflight testing of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment inside a laboratory at the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. PH-07 will be sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Space crop production scientists Oscar Monje (left) and Blake Costine harvest Outredgeous romaine lettuce for preflight testing of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment inside a laboratory at the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. PH-07 will be sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

Space crop production scientists inside a laboratory at the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida harvest Outredgeous romaine lettuce for preflight testing of the Plant Habitat-07 (PH-07) experiment on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. PH-07 will be sent to the International Space Station on NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission to study how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions impact plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome.

jsc2025e047410 (2/27/2024) --- Lettuce grown with the drought (left) and wilt (right) moisture treatments halfway through the harvest procedure on day 28 of a ground experiment for Spaceflight Microbiome of a Food Crop Grown Using Different Substrate Moisture Levels (Plant Habitat-07). Plant Habitat-07 investigates how plants and their communities of microorganisms respond to different levels of water. Results could support development of systems for growing food crops on future missions. Image courtesy of the PH-07 team.

iss072e404269 (Dec. 27, 2024) --- Red Romaine lettuce is pictured growing inside the Kibo laboratory module's Advanced Plant Habitat aboard the International Space Station. The lettuce was being grown for the Plant Habitat-07 space botany investigation that is exploring how plants and their associated communities of microorganisms respond to different levels of water in microgravity. Results could support plant growth and the creation of systems that produce safe and nutritious food for crew members on future space missions.

jsc2025e047408 (2/13/2024) --- Dividers installed on day 14 to separate the canopies and microbiomes of lettuce plants grown with different moisture treatments as part of a ground experiment for The Spaceflight Microbiome of a Food Crop Grown Using Different Substrate Moisture Levels (Plant Habitat-07). This investigation studies how plants, and their communities of microorganisms respond to different levels of water. Results could support development of systems for growing food crops on future missions. Image courtesy of the PH-07 Team.

iss072e363510 (12/13/2024) --- The Spaceflight Microbiome of a Food Crop Grown Using Different Substrate Moisture Levels (Plant Habitat-07) investigation grows ‘Outredgeous’ red romaine lettuce aboard the International Space Station’s Advanced Plant Habitat to assess different substrate moisture treatments and their effects on the microbial communities in the plants, roots, and water.

iss072e404275 (12/27/2024) --- The Spaceflight Microbiome of a Food Crop Grown Using Different Substrate Moisture Levels (Plant Habitat-07) investigation grows ‘Outredgeous’ red romaine lettuce aboard the International Space Station’s Advanced Plant Habitat to assess different substrate moisture treatments and their effects on the microbial communities in the plants, roots, and water. This image shows lettuce grown with wilt moisture treatments halfway through the harvest procedure on Day 28.

iss072e404277 (12/27/2024) --- The Plant Habitat-07 investigation grows ‘Outredgeous’ Red Romaine Lettuce aboard the Advanced Plant Habitat to assess different substrate moisture treatments and their effects on the microbial communities in the plants, roots, and water. This image shows lettuce grown with the control (left) and flood (right) moisture treatments prior to harvest on Day 28.

iss072e350731 (12/6/2024) --- The Spaceflight Microbiome of a Food Crop Grown Using Different Substrate Moisture Levels (Plant Habitat-07) investigation grows ‘Outredgeous’ red romaine lettuce aboard the International Space Station’s Advanced Plant Habitat to assess different substrate moisture treatments and their effects on the microbial communities in the plants, roots, and water. This preflight ground image shows ‘Outredgeous’ red romaine lettuce seedlings after thinning on Day 7.

jsc2025e047407 (2/6/2024) --- ‘Outredgeous’ red romaine lettuce seedlings after thinning on Day 7 as part of a ground experiment for Spaceflight Microbiome of a Food Crop Grown Using Different Substrate Moisture Levels (Plant Habitat-07). This investigation studies how plants, and their communities of microorganisms respond to different levels of water. Results could support development of systems for growing food crops on future missions. Image courtesy of the PH-07 Team.

jsc2025e047409 (2/27/2024) --- Lettuce grown as a ground experiment with the control (left) and flood (right) moisture treatments prior to harvest on day 28. The Spaceflight Microbiome of a Food Crop Grown Using Different Substrate Moisture Levels (Plant Habitat-07) investigates how plants, and their communities of microorganisms respond to different levels of water. Results could support development of systems for growing food crops on future missions. Image courtesy of the PH-07 Team.