Thailand team preparing watermeal for LDC

The smallest flowering plant on Earth might become a nutritious foodstuff for astronauts in the future, as well as a highly efficient source of oxygen. To help test its suitability for space, floating clumps of watermeal – individually the size of a pinhead – were subjected to 20 times normal Earth gravity aboard ESA’s Large Diameter Centrifuge by a team from Mahidol University in Thailand. Watermeal samples were placed into boxes equipped with LEDs that mimic natural sunlight. These boxes were then within a centrifuge gondola, then left to grow while spinning at 20 g.