China: Scientists are planting space potatoes

I wonder what will be different, what will make the potato that spent five months in space better, and what do scientists expect from plants with such a background? Can we expect space potatoes to be more resistant than ordinary potato varieties, or is this just an idealized expectation without any scientific explanation behind it? Scientists have begun sorting and growing more than 60,000 seed tubers that spent five months in space, hoping to discover unique traits that could improve production efficiency and yield. The tubers were delivered to the Shangdu Potato Technology Innovation Center in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region after the Shenzhou XVI space mission crew returned to Earth on October 31, 2023. The space potato growing process includes laboratory, greenhouse and field testing stages said Zhang Linhai, director of the Shangdu Potato Cultivation Innovation Center. The region boasts an excellent potato-growing environment: high elevation, cool climate, low pest and ...