The Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum is one of the first institutions on Long Island to receive a “Moon Tree” grown from seedlings that flew around the moon on NASA’s Artemis I mission in 2022, to plant in its community.
The Vanderbilt’s Moon Tree, a sweetgum, is planted in a special fenced plot near the entrance to the Vanderbilt Reichert Planetarium.
Dave Bush, Director of the Reichert Planetarium, said, “We are thrilled to share with our visitors a piece of life that has visited our nearest celestial neighbor, the Moon. We live in exciting times for human space exploration and this tree will serve as a symbol of our growth into the cosmos and as inspiration for a new generation of explorers — The Artemis Generation.”
The unmanned Artemis I rocket traveled around the Moon and back to test new life support systems designed for future astronauts. Passengers also included nearly 2,000 seeds of five tree species — sycamore, sweetgum, Douglas fir, loblolly pine, and giant sequoia.
When the rocket returned, NASA and the U.S. Forest Service collaborated, grew the seedlings into Moon tree saplings, and offered them to schools, museums, planetariums, and other educational organizations across the country. The first batch of seedlings was shipped to nearly 50 institutions across the 48 contiguous states.
NASA evaluated institutions based on their suitability to care for the various tree species and their ability to maximize educational opportunities around the life and growth of the trees in their communities.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said, “A new era of Moon trees will one day stand tall in communities across America. 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.”
The Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum is located at 180 Little Neck Road in Centerport. Operating hours for the fall are Fridays from noon to 5 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. www.vanderbiltmuseum.org.
