Today, the Tiverton Public Library announced that it is the recipient of a NASA Moon Tree sapling.
The library was chosen out of 1,300 applications to be one of 50 sites nationwide to receive a free sapling.
“The seed our new sweetgum tree grew from flew aboard the Orion spacecraft during the Artemis I test flight around the moon and back in November-December 2022,” Tiverton Public Library says in a press release. “After its flight and before arriving at Tiverton Public Library, the moon tree was grown by the U.S. Forest Service Coeur d’Alene Nursery in Idaho”.
The NASA Moon Tree project began in 1971 when seeds were flown into space about the Apollo 14 mission in the care of astronaut Stuart Roosa. Many of the saplings germinated from the seeds were planted to celebrate the nation’s bicentennial anniversary in 1976.
“A new era of Moon Trees will one day stand tall in communities across America,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in the NASA press release about the first wave of moon tree plantings. “NASA is bringing the spirit of exploration back down to Earth because space belongs to everyone. The Artemis generation will carry forth these seedlings that will be fertile ground for creativity, inspiration and discovery for years to come.”
“Thank you to our Children’s Librarian Meg Paquette for completing the application, Tiverton DPW for assisting us with the digging and protective fencing required by NASA, NASA, and the U.S. Forest Service,” says Tiverton Public Library in the press release.
Read more about the moon tree project from NASA https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-finds-new-homes-for-artemis-generation-of-moon-trees-across-us/
