First flower grown in space revealed on International Space Station

NEW YORK. KAZINFORM - Last year Mark Watney thrilled cinema audiences with his story of survival on Mars by (among other things) growing potatoes in space - declaring 'I am the greatest botanist on this planet!'

And now it seems that the real-life astronauts aboard the International Space Station have decided to take a leaf out of his book after growing the first flowers to bloom outside of Earth's atmosphere. Revealed today by U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly, who is currently completing the first full year in space, the flower is an edible zinnia - which can be used in salads.The flowers were grown inside the Veggie lab aboard ISS which was installed in early May 2014, according to nvs24.com.

While the ISS crew had previously raised two crops of romaine lettuce and arugula, the zinnias were the first flowering plants grown in space.
Explaining the significance of successfully growing a plant, Veggie project manager Trent Smith said: 'The zinnia plant is very different from lettuce. 'It is more sensitive to environmental parameters and light characteristics. It has a longer growth duration between 60 and 80 days.