The two astronauts who were sent as part of Boeing’s Crew Flight Test were Sunita “Suni” Williams and Butch Wilmore.
For more than a month now, Boeing’s Starliner has been trapped in orbit. The spacecraft was originally scheduled for a 10-day mission when it launched on June 5. But when it docked at the International Space Station the following day, it ran into unanticipated problems with its thrusters. The astronauts are conducting research while in orbit as they continue to work on a solution.
NASA releases research on space plants by Sunita Williams
As part of Boeing’s Crew Flight Test, two astronauts were deployed: Sunita “Suni” Williams and Butch Wilmore. According to a NASA statement, the two, with plenty of free time on their hands, conducted research on space plants and free-flying robots on Wednesday. According to the US space agency, Wilmore and Williams are “exploring ways to effectively water plants in the weightless environment.”
The announcement also stated that “The duo took turns throughout the day in the Harmony module, testing how root models and plants of various sizes would absorb water in microgravity . The Plant Water Management study looks at techniques such as hydroponics and air circulation to nourish plants growing aboard spacecraft and space habitats.”
NASA noted in an earlier statement that the two astronauts’ primary focus was testing various techniques for watering plants grown in the weightless microgravity environment without soil. According to the statement, “Williams first set up the Plant Water Management hardware in the Harmony module then tested a variety of liquid flow methods while video recording the results,”
It continues, “Following her work, Wilmore ran more tests using hydroponics and air circulation techniques to learn how to effectively nourish a variety of plants on spacecraft and space habitats.” In the meantime, the agency stated that the two “started their day servicing a variety of research hardware” in the release on Thursday.