The effects of suborbital space flight on plant germplasm in Kavus bio capsule

The development of commercial suborbital spacecraft in the world in recent years has provided an opportunity to understand the effects of short-term space flight factors on the biology of living organisms. Plants are an important element of life support systems in space exploration, as they provide essential components for long-term human survival outside of Earth. Their seeds, as plant genetic reserves or germplasm, have been among the most important biological payloads to be transferred to space since the past. This study aimed to investigate the effects of a suborbital flight (Kavus biocapsule) on the germination indices of tomato seeds and the growth indices (epicotyl and radicle length) of plants grown from them. The height of the capsule launch was 133 km and the total duration of the launch was 900 seconds. The launch speed and acceleration were 1657.97 meters per second and 64 meters per square second, respectively. The duration of microgravity and hypergravity applied to biological samples in this launch was 245 and 68 seconds, respectively. The range of temperature fluctuations was between -84.5 and +264.48 degrees Celsius. After the launch and successful recovery of the biological payload, the seed germination and seedling growth indices were compared between the launch and ground control groups. Spaceflight stimulated the initial growth of seeds and positively affected the growth indices of tomato seedlings in the launch group compared to the ground control group. To our knowledge, data regarding the ultrafast response of plants to short-term spaceflight conditions is very limited. This report can provide new insights regarding the importance of studying the effects of short-term space flights on biological systems, especially plants.