With the world's population estimated to reach almost 10 billion by 2050, there's a clear need for innovative solutions through science and technology aimed at food security.

This is the main goal of the ground-breaking experiment led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

In November 2022, Arabidopsis and Sorghum varieties traveled in an uncrewed cargo shuttle from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility.

While in space, they were exposed to the prevailing conditions such as a complex mixture of cosmic radiation, microgravity and extreme temperatures inside and outside the International Space Station (ISS).

Upon their return, which is expected to happen in early April, scientists at the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture plan to grow the seeds and screen them for useful traits to better understand space-induced mutations and identify new varieties.

The goal is to develop new crops that can adapt to climate change and help boost global food security. 

"I am in awe of the resilience of nature, and excited by the endless benefits that space exploration can bring to transform our agrifood systems to be more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable across the globe," said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, who is a trained plant breeder.

While similar experiments have been carried out since 1946, this is the first time that the IAEA and FAO are conducting genomic and biological analyses on seeds sent to space in around 60 years of experience in inducing plant mutations.

"This is science that could have a real impact on people’s lives in the not-too-distant future, by helping us grow stronger crops and feed more people," IAEA Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi said. 

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