This week 50 years ago, the Apollo 14 crew flew their mission to the moon. Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell were the third pair of astronauts to walk on the lunar surface. They conducted two moonwalks in the highlands of Fra Mauro, collected rocks and set up scientific experiments, and broadcast the first color TV images of the moon.
Meanwhile, Stuart Roosa remained in orbit as the Command Module pilot. But Roosa wasn’t alone in circling the moon.
In his personal preference set, Roosa brought five types of tree seeds, about 400 seeds in total. After the mission, those seeds were germinated and grown, with between 1975 and the early 1980s growing between 200 and 300 seedlings and saplings across the country and around the world. But exactly where all those “Moon Trees” were planted has been lost. NASA has been trying to locate and document one of those trees and find out if there are any living trees.
“You may live near a moon tree and you don’t know about it,” said NASA scientist Dave Williams, who works at Goddard Spaceflight Center.
Williams has documented the locations of about 80 of these trees. If anyone knows or remembers attending a Moon Tree planting ceremony for a Moon Tree that is not yet on their list, Williams would love to hear from you.
The story of the Moon Trees began before Stuart Roosa became an astronaut. He had served as a smoke hunter for the US Forest Service and skydiving in areas to help fight wildfires. After Roosa was chosen to be part of Apollo 14, the Forest Service approached him and asked if he would consider being part of a small experiment: would he take tree seeds to the moon, and after the flight, the Forest Service would monitor the project to see if the seeds would germinate after being in weightlessness.
“The seeds were stored in a container the size of a soda can, and it was sealed so that they never got into the vacuum of space,” Williams said. “They also had seeds that stayed on Earth, so they planned some kind of controlled experiment, but no one really expected there to be any difference in the seeds.”
However, anything brought back from the moon had to be decontaminated in a vacuum chamber, and during the decontamination process, the seed pod burst open, dispersing the seeds – and thus the seeds were actually exposed to vacuum – which was not part of the original experiment!
“The seeds were germinated and grown in greenhouses,” said Williams, “and in a way they were doing a science experiment, but it was mostly a kind of public relations.”
The seedlings and saplings were given to congressmen and foreign ambassadors. They have been planted in town halls, parks and libraries, as well as NASA centers, universities and capitals in the US.
There were five different types of tree seeds: Loblolly Pine, Sycamore, Sweetgum, Redwood, and Douglas Fir. In the White House, a Loblolly pine, which has since died, was planted. Trees were planted in Brazil, Switzerland, and presented to the Emperor of Japan, among others.
The first Moon Tree ever planted was a Sycamore in Washington Square in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1975 in preparation for the US Bicentennial in 1976. The original tree planted there died, but a clone was planted in 2011; the clone did not bloom and was removed in 2019. The original plaque is still there, with plans to plant another clone tree.
There were plans to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 14 flight at the Goddard Space Flight Center, where another Moon Tree is being planted, but plans fell through due to the pandemic.
From personal experience, seeing and touching a Moon Tree is a wonderful experience, providing a wonderful connection to both the Apollo program and the effect it had on our appreciation for our own planet Earth. I had the chance to visit three Moon Trees: one in Kennedy Space Center (KSC now has a Moon Tree Garden), the clone in Philadelphia a few years ago, and another Sycamore that is on the campus of the University of Arizona is located in Tucson, just outside the Flandrau Science Center & Planetarium. The tree was shown to me by Geoff Notkin, author, adventurer, and co-star of Discovery Channel’s Meteorite Men series. Notkin is also the president of the National Space Society and is CEO of Aerolite Meteorites Inc, a company that provides meteorite samples to researchers, museums and collectors around the world.
“I’ve been fascinated with the Moon Tree story for a long time, and after moving to Tucson I was almost speechless to find out there was a Moon Tree in my adopted hometown!” Notkin said. He agreed that seeing a Moon Tree is an experience in itself.
“It was almost a metaphysical experience to put my hand on the trunk of the tree, which had grown from a seed that was flown to the moon,” he said. “I’ve held a number of space rocks in my hands – both NASA monsters and lunar meteorites – and I have to say none of them were as exciting as touching the Moon Tree! Something in me connected deeply with the story of Stuart Roosa and the idea of taking these seeds to the moon. “
Notkin is working on a book about the Moon Trees and the story of Stuart Roosa (Roosa sadly died in 1994), trying to tell the whole story and possibly locate more of the trees. But the hunt for more Moon Trees can be just as challenging as the hunt for meteorites. Without good data on where all the trees are planted, the whereabouts of the trees are largely unknown today.
“As space exploration enthusiasts, we are usually very involved in the technical aspects of space flight,” Notkin told me. “But for me it is so enchanting that this experiment produces a tangible result from natural history. These trees exist – all over the world – and in their own quiet way they celebrate the power of the Apollo program. “
If you know of any other Moon Trees that are not already listed here, or if you remember attending a Moon Tree planting ceremony, check out this NASA website on how to document your tree. If you have a Moon Tree story, we’d love to hear it! Share your story in the comments below or on Universe Today’s social media sites.
Main image caption: The plaque in Washington Square in Philadelphia commemorating the planting of the first Moon Tree.
