Tuesday, July 24, 2012

The Moon Tree's


The "Moon Trees"

Apollo 14 launched in the late afternoon of January 31, 1971 on what was to be our third trip to the lunar surface. Five days later Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell walked on the Moon while Stuart Roosa, a former U.S. Forest Service smoke jumper, orbited above in the command module. Packed in small containers in Roosa's personal kit were hundreds of tree seeds, part of a joint NASA/USFS project. Upon return to Earth, the seeds were germinated by the Forest Service. Known as the "Moon Trees", the resulting seedlings were planted throughout the United States (often as part of the nation's bicentennial in 1976) and the world. They stand as a tribute to astronaut Roosa and the Apollo program.
The project began after Roosa was chosen for the Apollo 14 mission. Ed Cliff, Chief of the Forest Service, knew of Stuart Roosa from his days as a smoke jumper and contacted him about bringing seeds into space. Stan Krugman of the Forest Service was put in charge of the project and selected the seeds for the experiment. Seeds were chosen from five different types of trees: Loblolly Pine, Sycamore, Sweetgum, Redwood, and Douglas Fir. The seeds were classified and sorted, and control seeds were kept on Earth for later comparison. Roosa carried about 400 - 500 seeds in his personal kit which stayed with him as he orbited the Moon in the command module "Kitty Hawk" in February, 1971. Unfortunately, the seed canisters burst open during the decontamination procedures after their return to Earth, and the seeds got mixed together and were presumed to be no longer viable.
Stan Krugman had the seeds sent to the southern Forest Service station in Gulfport, Mississippi and to the western station in Placerville, California to attempt germination. Surprisingly, nearly all the seeds germinated successfully, and the Forest Service had some 420 to 450 seedlings after a few years (some from cuttings). Some of these were planted with their earth-bound counterparts as controls, (as would be expected, after over twenty years there is no discernible difference) but most were given away in 1975 and 1976 to many state forestry organizations to be planted as part of the nation's bicentennial celebration. These trees were southern and western species, so not all states received trees. A Loblolly Pine was planted at the White House, and trees were planted in Brazil, Switzerland, and presented to the Emperor of Japan, among others. Trees have also been planted in Washington Square in Philadelphia, at Valley Forge, in the International Forest of Friendship, and at various universities and NASA centers.  A list of Moon Tree locations can be found at the bottom of the page.
Stuart Roosa was born on 16 August 1933, in Durango, Colorado. He worked for the Forest Service in the early 1950's as a smoke jumper fighting fires and later joined the Air Force and became a test pilot. He was one of 19 people selected for the astronaut class of 1966 and was part of the astronaut support crew for Apollo 9. Following Apollo 14, Roosa was backup command module pilot for Apollo's 16 and 17. He then worked on the Space Shuttle program until his retirement as a Colonel in the Air Force in 1976, the time when many of his trees were being planted.
Sadly, Stuart Roosa passed away in December, 1994. The Moon Trees continue to flourish, a living monument to our first visits to the Moon and a fitting memorial to Stuart Roosa. Believed locations of some Moon Trees are listed below, but no list was ever kept nor any systematic tracking made of the disposition of all the trees. If you know of a Moon Tree, please send a message to dave.williams@nasa.gov.

Moon Tree Locations

City and State
Location
Type of Tree
Planting Date
Birmingham,
Alabama
Sycamore
April 1976
Montgomery,
Alabama
Loblolly Pine
April, 1976
Troy,
Alabama
Loblolly Pine
5 August 1976
Tuscumbia,
Alabama
Loblolly Pine
19 October 1976
Flagstaff,
Arizona
Douglas Fir
30 April 1976
University of Arizona, Tucson
Arizona
Sycamore
30 April 1976
Ft. Smith,
Arkansas
Sebastian County Courthouse
Loblolly Pine
15 March 1976
Washington,
Arkansas
Loblolly Pine
15 March 1976
Arcata,
California
3 Redwoods

Berkeley,
California
Redwood
26 July 1976
El Dorado Hills,
California
Redwood
1976
Lockeford,
California
Redwood
1979
Monterey,
California
Redwood
July 1976
Sacramento,
California
Redwood
1976
San Dimas,
California
Redwood
29 March 1977
San Luis Obispo,
California
Redwood
30 July 1976
Cape Canaveral,
Florida
Sycamore
25 June 1976
Gainesville,
Florida
Sycamore

Keystone Heights,
Florida
Sycamore
1984
Perry,
Florida
Forest Capital Park
Loblolly Pine
26 April 1978
Tallahassee,
Florida
Cascades Park
Sycamore

Tallahassee,
Florida
Doyle Conner Building
Loblolly Pine

Boise,
Idaho
Loblolly Pine
1977
Moscow,
Idaho
Sycamore

Cannelton,
Indiana
Sycamore
1976
Indianapolis,
Indiana
Sycamore
9 April 1976
Lincoln City,
Indiana
Sycamore
1 May 1976
Tell City,
Indiana
2 Sweetgums
1976
Atchison,
Kansas
Sycamore
24 July 1986
Elmer,
Louisiana
Loblolly Pine
April 1976
Bethesda,
Maryland
Society of American Foresters
Loblolly Pine
30 September 1975
Greenbelt,
Maryland
Sycamore
9 June 1977
Holliston,
Massachusetts
Sycamore
April 1976
Mississippi St. Univ.,
Mississippi
Sycamore
1975
Waynesboro,
Mississippi
Forestry Commission Nursery
Sycamore

DeSoto,
Missouri
Sycamore

Monmouth County,
New Jersey
Sycamore

Asheville,
North Carolina
Sycamore
19 March 1976
Pisgah National Forest,
North Carolina
Sycamore

Jefferson County,
Ohio
Sycamore
29 July 1976
University of Oregon, Eugene
Oregon
Erb Memorial Union
Douglas Fir

Roseburg,
Oregon
Douglas Fir
3 May 1976
Oregon State University, Corvallis
Oregon
Douglas Fir
1976
Salem,
Oregon
Douglas Fir
30 April 1976
Salem,
Oregon
Private Residence
2 Douglas Firs
1973
Dillsburg,
Pennsylvania
Sycamore
30 April 1976
Ebensburg,
Pennsylvania
Sycamore
29 June 1976
Hollidaysburg,
Pennsylvania
Sycamore
5 May 1976
King of Prussia,
Pennsylvania
Sycamore
30 June 1976
Newtown/Langhorne,
Pennsylvania
Sycamore
30 April 1976
Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania
Sycamore
6 May 1975
Knoxville,
Tennessee
University of Tennessee
Loblolly Pine
April 1976
Sewanee,
Tennessee
Sycamore
April 1976
Westlake,
Texas
Private Residence
Sycamore
1978
Draper,
Utah
Sycamore

Hampton,
Virginia
Sycamore
30 April 1976
Loudoun County,
Virginia
Sweetgum
1978
Olympia,
Washington
Douglas Fir





Brasilia,
Brazil
Sweetgum
14 January 1980
Rio Grande do Sul,
Brazil
Redwood (?)
18 August 1981




Auburn University,
Alabama
Loblolly Pine *,
Sycamore *
22 October 1976
Huntsville,
Alabama
5 Sycamores *,
2 Pines *
29 October 1976
Tuskegee,
Alabama
VA Hospital (CAVHCS)
Loblolly Pine *
1976
Little Rock,
Arkansas
Loblolly Pine *
15 March 1976
Monticello,
Arkansas
University of Arkansas at Monticello
Loblolly Pine *
1977?
New Orleans,
Louisiana
Loblolly Pine *
June 1983
New Orleans,
Louisiana
Loblolly Pine (2?) *
July 1976
North Pembroke,
Massachusetts
Historical Society
Sycamore? *
April 1976
Wyoming,
Michigan
Sycamore *
23 April 1976
Albuquerque,
New Mexico
Civic Plaza
Douglas Fir *

Illinois Valley,
Oregon
Douglas Fir *

Tullahoma,
Tennessee
Loblolly Pine *
April 1976
Salt Lake City,
Utah
State Capitol Building
Sycamore *

Washington,
D.C.
White House
Loblolly Pine *
19 January 1977

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