Moon trees are trees grown from seeds taken into orbit around the Moon, initially by Apollo 14 in 1971, and later by Artemis 1 in 2022.[1] The idea was first proposed by Edward P. Cliff, then the Chief of the United States Forest Service, who convinced Stuart Roosa, the Command Module Pilot on the Apollo 14 mission, to bring a small canister containing about 500 seeds aboard the module in 1971. Seeds for the experiment were chosen from five species of tree: loblolly pine, sycamore, sweetgum, redwood, and Douglas fir.[2] [3] In 2022, NASA announced it would be reviving the Moon tree program by carrying 1,000 seeds aboard Artemis 1.[4]
After the flight, the seeds were sent to the southern Forest Service station in Gulfport, Mississippi, and to the western station in Placerville, California, with the intent to germinate them. Nearly all the seeds germinated successfully, and after a few years, the Forest Service had about 420 seedlings. Some of these were planted alongside their Earth-bound counterparts, which were specifically set aside as controls. After more than 40 years, there was no discernible difference between the two classes of trees. Most of the Moon trees were given away in 1975 and 1976 to state forestry organizations, in order to be planted as part of the nation's bicentennial celebration. Since the trees were all of southern or western species, not all states received trees. A Loblolly Pine was planted at the White House, and trees were planted in Brazil, Switzerland, and presented to Emperor Hirohito, among others.[5]
The locations of many of the trees that were planted from these seeds were largely unknown for decades. In 1996, a third-grade teacher, Joan Goble, and her students found a tree in their local area with a plaque identifying it as a Moon tree. Goble sent an email to NASA, and reached employee Dave Williams. Williams was unaware of the trees' existence, as were most of his colleagues at NASA. Upon doing some research, Williams found some old newspaper clippings that described the initial actions taken by Roosa to bring these seeds to space and home to be planted.[6] Williams posted a page on NASA's official website asking for public help to find the trees. The page also contained a table listing the locations and species of known Moon trees. Williams began to hear from people around the United States who had seen trees with plaques identifying them as Moon trees. Williams began to manage a database listing details about such trees, including their location and species. In 2011, an article in Wired magazine described the effort, and provided Williams' email address, encouraging anyone to write who might have data on existing Moon trees.[7] As of 2022, efforts were continuing to identify and locate existing trees; the NASA page remains active.[8]
In March 2021, the Royal Astronomical Society and the UK Space Agency asked for the help of the public to identify up to 15 Moon Trees that may be growing in the United Kingdom. As of April 2021, none of the trees that supposedly came to the UK have been identified.[9]
The Moon Tree Foundation is an organization run by Roosa's daughter, Rosemary, which seeks to plant Moon trees in regions around the world. The foundation sponsors and hosts ceremonies to plant new trees, with seeds produced by the original generation of trees that grew from the seeds carried by Roosa in 1971.[10]
| † | Indicates a tree that is no longer alive. | |
|---|---|---|
| ‡ | Indicates the exact date of planting is unknown. |
| City | State | Location | Species | Date planted | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salem | Private Residence | 2 Douglas Firs | 1973 ‡ | |||
| Wiggins | Girl Scouts Camp Iti Kana | Sycamore | 1974 ‡ | |||
| Starkville | Dorman Hall, Mississippi State University | Sycamore | 1975 ‡ | [11] | ||
| Philadelphia | Washington Square Park | Sycamore † | May 6, 1975 | [12] | ||
| Bethesda | Society of American Foresters | Loblolly Pine | September 30, 1975 | [13] | ||
| Princeton | USDA Forestry Sciences Laboratory | Sycamore | October 18, 1975 | [14] | ||
| Fort Smith | Sebastian County Courthouse | Loblolly Pine | March 15, 1976 | [15] | ||
| Little Rock | Forestry Commission Headquarters | Loblolly Pine † | March 15, 1976 | [16] | ||
| Monticello | University of Arkansas at Monticello | Loblolly Pine † | March 15, 1976 | [17] | ||
| Washington | Historic Washington State Park | Loblolly Pine | March 15, 1976 | [18] | ||
| Asheville | Botanical Gardens at Asheville | Sycamore | March 19, 1976 | [19] | ||
| College Station | D. A. "Andy" Anderson Arboretum | Sycamore † | March 21, 1976 | [20] | ||
| Birmingham | Birmingham Botanical Gardens, near Lane Park | Sycamore | April 1976 ‡ | [21] | ||
| Montgomery | Alabama State Capitol Building | Loblolly Pine | April 1976 ‡ | [22] | ||
| North Pembroke | Pembroke Historical Society | Sycamore † | April 1976 ‡ | |||
| Elmer | Palustris Experiment Station, Kisatchie National Forest | Loblolly Pine | April 1976 ‡ | [23] | ||
| Knoxville | Forestry Experiment Station, University of Tennessee | Loblolly Pine | April 1976 ‡ | [24] | ||
| Sewanee | Woods Laboratories, University of the South | Sycamore | April 1976 ‡ | [25] | ||
| Elizabethton | Fort Watauga, Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area | Sycamore † | April 1976 ‡ | [26] | ||
| Tullahoma | Arnold Air Force Base | Loblolly Pine † | April 1976 ‡ | [27] | ||
| Olympia | Washington State Capitol Building | Douglas Fir | April 1976 ‡ | [28] | ||
| Albuquerque | Harry E. Kinney Civic Plaza | Douglas Fir † | April 7, 1976 | [29] | ||
| Indianapolis | Indiana Statehouse | Sycamore | April 9, 1976 | [30] | ||
| Lansing | Michigan State Capitol Building | Sycamore † | April 22, 1976 | [31] | ||
| Wyoming | Wyoming Police Department | Sycamore † | April 23, 1976 | [32] | ||
| Niles | Fernwood Botanical Gardens and Nature Preserve | Sycamore | April 23, 1976 | [33] | ||
| Salt Lake City | Utah State Capitol Building | Douglas Fir † | April 28, 1976 | [34] | ||
| Flagstaff | Frances Short Pond, formerly Flagstaff Junior High School | Douglas Fir † | April 30, 1976 | [35] | ||
| Tucson | Kuiper Space Sciences Building, University of Arizona | Sycamore | April 30, 1976 | [36] | ||
| Des Moines | Iowa State Capitol Building | Sycamore | April 30, 1976 | [37] | ||
| Middletown | Core Creek Park | Sycamore | April 30, 1976 | [38] | ||
| Salem | Oregon State Capitol Building | Douglas Fir | April 30, 1976 | [39] | ||
| Hampton | Albert W. Patrick III, Elementary School | Sycamore | April 30, 1976 | [40] | ||
| Arcata | California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt | 3 Redwoods | May 1976 ‡ | [41] | ||
| Athens | Athens-Clarke County Planning Department | Loblolly Pine | May 1976 ‡ | [42] | ||
| Lincoln City | Lincoln State Park | Sycamore | May 1, 1976 | [43] | ||
| Roseburg | Roseburg Veteran Affairs Medical Center | Douglas Fir | May 3, 1976 | [44] | ||
| Hollidaysburg | Highland Hall | Sycamore | May 5, 1976 | [45] | ||
| Boise | Idaho State Capitol Building | Douglas Fir † | May 7, 1976 | [46] | ||
| Capitan | Smokey Bear State Park | Sycamore † | May 15, 1976 | [47] | ||
| Topton | Borough Hall | Sycamore | June 20, 1976 | [48] | ||
| Cape Canaveral | Kennedy Space Center | Sycamore † | June 25, 1976 | [49] | ||
| Ebensburg | Cambria County Courthouse | Sycamore | June 29, 1976 | [50] | ||
| King of Prussia | Lockheed Martin Space Systems Building | Sycamore | June 30, 1976 | |||
| Missoula | University Center Mall, University of Montana | Douglas Fir | July 17, 1976 | [51] | ||
| New Orleans | NASA Michoud Assembly Facility | Loblolly Pine † | July 20, 1976 | [52] | ||
| Santa Fe | New Mexico State Capitol Building | Douglas Fir | July 22, 1976 | [53] | ||
| Atchison | International Forest of Friendship | Sycamore | July 24, 1976 | [54] | ||
| Berkeley | Northwest area of Tilden Nature Area | 2 Redwoods | July 26, 1976 | [55] | ||
| Monterey | Friendly Plaza, near Colton Hall | Redwood | July 27, 1976 | [56] | ||
| Steubenville | Friendship Park | Sycamore | July 29, 1976 | [57] | ||
| San Luis Obispo | Mission Plaza | Redwood | July 30, 1976 | [58] | ||
| Troy | Pioneer Museum of Alabama | Loblolly Pine | August 5, 1976 | [59] | ||
| Silver City | Gough Park | Sycamore | August 14, 1976 | [60] | ||
| Alamogordo | New Mexico Museum of Space History | Sycamore † | October 5, 1976 | [61] | ||
| Brevard | Cradle of Forestry, Pisgah National Forest | Sycamore | October 18, 1976 | [62] | ||
| Tuscumbia | Ivy Green, historic monument and birthplace of Helen Keller | Loblolly Pine | October 19, 1976 | [63] | ||
| Auburn | G.W. Andrews Forestry Sciences Lab, Auburn University | Loblolly Pine † | October 22, 1976 | [64] | ||
| Huntsville | U.S. Space and Rocket Center | 5 Sycamores, 2 Pines * | October 29, 1976 | [65] | ||
| Tuskegee | Veteran Affairs Hospital (CAVHCS) | Loblolly Pine † | 1976 ‡ | |||
| Sacramento | California State Capitol Building | Redwood | April 21, 1976 | [66] | ||
| El Dorado Hills | St. Stephen's Lutheran Church | Redwood † | 1976 ‡ | [67] | ||
| Tallahassee | Florida Department of Agriculture | Loblolly Pine | 1976 ‡ | [68] | ||
| Waycross | Okefenokee Regional Educational Service Agency | Loblolly Pine | 1976 ‡ | [69] | ||
| Cannelton | Girl Scouts Camp Koch | Sycamore | 1976 ‡ | [70] | ||
| Tell City | Hoosier National Forest Service Office | 2 Sweetgums | 1976 ‡ | [71] | ||
| Monmouth | Monmouth County Courthouse | Sycamore † | 1976 ‡ | [72] | ||
| Clyde | Disc Golf Course, Haywood Community College | Sycamore | 1976 ‡ | [73] | ||
| Draper | Lone Peak Conservation Center | Sycamore | 1976 ‡ | [74] | ||
| Columbus | Franklin Park Conservatory | Sycamore † | 1976 ‡ | [75] | ||
| Corvallis | Peavy Hall, Oregon State University | Douglas Fir | 1976 ‡ | [76] | ||
| Cave Junction | Siskiyou Smokejumper Base, Illinois Valley Airport | Douglas Fir † | 1976 ‡ | [77] | ||
| Eugene | Erb Memorial Union, University of Oregon | Douglas Fir | 1976 ‡ | [78] | ||
| Doswell | Kings Dominion Amusement Park | 2 Sycamores (1 dead) | 1976 ‡ | [79] | ||
| Washington, D.C. | Rose Garden, White House | Loblolly Pine † | January 19, 1977 | [80] | ||
| San Dimas | San Dimas Technology and Development Center | Redwood | March 29, 1977 | [81] | ||
| Gainesville | University of Florida | Sycamore | 1977 ‡ | [82] | ||
| Boise | Lowell Elementary School | Loblolly Pine | 1977 ‡ | [83] | ||
| Greenbelt | Goddard Space Flight Center | Sycamore | June 9, 1977 | [84] | ||
| Perry | Forest Capital Museum State Park | Loblolly Pine | April 29, 1978 | [85] | ||
| Hamilton | Scott Jenkins Memorial Park | Sweetgum | September 1978 ‡ | [86] | ||
| Westlake | Private Residence | Sycamore | 1978 ‡ | |||
| Lockeford | Lockeford Plant Materials Center | Redwood | 1979 ‡ | [87] | ||
| Dillsburg | Dillsburg Elementary School | Sycamore | April 29, 1983 | [88] | ||
| New Orleans | New Orleans River Walk | Loblolly Pine † | June 1983 ‡ | [89] | ||
| Holliston | Holliston Police Station | Sycamore | 1982 ‡ | [90] | ||
| Keystone Heights | Keystone Heights Library | Sycamore | 1984 ‡ | [91] | ||
| Plano | Plano Senior High School | Sycamore † | November 4, 2009 | [92] | ||
| Tallahassee | Cascades Park | Sycamore | Unknown ‡ | [93] | ||
| Moscow | Administration Building, University of Idaho | Sycamore † | Unknown ‡ | [94] | ||
| Waynesboro | Forestry Commission Nursery | Sycamore | Unknown ‡ | [95] | ||
| DeSoto | Walthers Park | Sycamore | Unknown ‡ | [96] | ||
| Elkton | D.L. Phipps State Forest Nursery | Douglas Fir | Unknown ‡ | [97] | ||
| Coudersport | Coudersport Area Recreational Park | Sycamore | Unknown ‡ | [98] | ||
| Piedmont | Private Residence | Sycamore | Unknown ‡ | [99] |
| City | Country | Location | Species | Date planted | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brasília | Institute for Environment and Natural Renewable Resources | Sweetgum | January 14, 1980 | [100] | ||
| Santa Rosa | Soybean Fairgrounds, Parque Municipal de Exposições | Redwood | August 18, 1981 | [101] | ||
| Cambará do Sul | St. Joseph Central Square | Redwood | September 26, 1982 | [102] |
