Commander Steve Swanson harvests plants for the VEG-01 investigation. He is harvesting them on the Maintenance Work Area (MWA) in the Node 2/Harmony. The Veg-01 hardware validation test investigation utilizes the Veggie facility on ISS. This investigation will assess on-orbit function and performance of the Veggie,and focus on the growth and development of Outredgeous Lettuce (Lactuca sativa ) seedlings in the spaceflight environment and the effects of the spaceflight environment on composition of microbial flora on the Veggie-grown plants and the Veggie facility. Lettuce plants are harvested on-orbit, frozen at <-80oC and returned to the ground for post-flight evaluation. Microbial sampling swabs will be taken of the Veggie facility and plant material, frozen and returned to the ground for environmental microbiological examination. Rooting pillows and water sample syringes will also be returned for microbial sampling and root analysis.
ISS040-E-009116 (10 June 2014) --- In the International Space Station?s Harmony node, NASA astronaut Steve Swanson, Expedition 40 commander, harvests a crop of red romaine lettuce plants that were grown from seed inside the station?s Veggie facility, a low-cost plant growth chamber that uses a flat-panel light bank for plant growth and crew observation. For the Veg-01 experiment, researchers are testing and validating the Veggie hardware, and the plants will be returned to Earth to determine food safety.
ISS040-E-014865 (18 June 2014) --- European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst, Expedition 40 flight engineer, works with Fundamental and Applied Studies of Emulsion Stability (FASES) experiment hardware in the Columbus laboratory of the International Space Station. The emulsion study sponsored by ESA and located inside the Columbus laboratory Fluids Science Laboratory could lead to environmentally friendly products with industrial and space applications.
Photographic documentation of Cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev, Expedition 40 flight engineer, working on the Hardware Transfer from ТÐÐ 423 (DC1) for CASKAD experiment. Photo taken by the Expedition 40 crew.