ORIG_0793*A

This Platanus occidentalis (Space Sycamore) tree was germinated in 1988 during a mission aboard the space shuttle Atlantis (STS-27). Purdue astronaut Jerry Ross took seeds, all Indiana native tree species, into space as part of the Space Trees Project. The goal was to germinate them in microgravity, then return to Earth for study and distribution. Ross was doing this as part of a 4-H outreach project with Walter Beineke, a Professor of Forestry at Purdue University. The seeds were grown into saplings on Purdue University’s campus. In 1990, to celebrate the diamond anniversary of Purdue Extension Service. One of the trees was donated to Purdue by astronaut Jerry Ross and his wife, Karen (a NASA food expert), to commemorate the impact 4-H experiences had on their lives, and now stands in front of Lilly Hall of Life Sciences. These trees continue to grow in many Indiana communities today.