From Point Pleasant to Space: Student’s Experiment Takes Flight This Saturday

This is incredible.  A college freshman from Point Pleasant Borough in New Jersey has designed a unique farming experiment that will launch tomorrow, headed to the International Space Station.

Meet Sophia Bradach, a  Stockton University student that's sending snow peas into space.  Yes, seriously.  Diane D'Amico, Director of News and Media Relations at Stockton University, tells us that Sophia is an Environmental Science major and her work and research will help show "if snow peas can self-fertilize through nitrogen fixation in a microgravity environment."  Why?  Space is not abundant on a space station, hence a "space garden" is not feasible.  The ability to self fertilize could help astronauts and visitors sustainably farm.  Yes, I said guests.  My gut tells me we should expect regular humans to travel to space soon and regularly thanks to Elon Musk and Space X.

What interests Sophia in all of this?

“My room is half plants. It makes me happy when I come home,”

And how cool is this?  This marks 4 years in a row that Stockton University students have been chosen to participate in the Student Spaceflight Experiments Program.  Stockton University is a public 4-year university and has achieved several accolades, including best regional college according to the Princeton Review.  See many here.

The closest Sophia Bradach had been to space was following NASA astronauts on Instagram, until this year, when the...

Posted by Stockton University on Thursday, April 2, 2020