Mushrooms spent a month on the ISS, then were eaten in pasta on Earth

Representative Image of a rocket carrying mycelium fungi launching into space on a mission to the International Space Station (AI Generated Image) In August 2024, researchers at Swinburne University of Technology in Australia sent 36 small vials containing fungi into space aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket bound for the International Space Station. The vials held mycelium, the filament-like network from which mushrooms grow, belonging to three edible species: lion's mane, turkey's tail and cordyceps. The fungi remained aboard the ISS for close to a month before returning to Earth, eventually making their way back to Australia in 2025. Once the researchers had the vials back, they transferred the mycelium into nutrient-rich growing substrates and placed them in different environments to see whether the fungi could produce mushrooms after their time in space. Within days, the first mushrooms began emerging, and within a week the team had a batch of lion's mane ready to harvest. The researchers then cooked the mushrooms into a creamy pasta sauce and ate them, turning an experiment in space biology into an unusually literal taste test.Why scientists sent fungi to the ISSThe experiment wa...