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Development of Hardware for the Optimization of Plant Growth in Space.  H. G. Levine1, J. J. Prenger2, and D. Rouzan-Wheeldon2  1NASA Biological Science Office and 2Dynamac Corporation, Kennedy Space Center, FL. 

   The Water Offset Nutrient Delivery ExpeRiment (WONDER) investigates water and nutrient delivery in microgravity-rated nutrient delivery systems (NDS) for fresh food production and advanced life support functions.  The overall goal of the payload is to determine how reduced gravity alters the optimum water delivery algorithm within the plant root zone.  Feedback irrigation control using media moisture sensors is used to maintain root zone moisture setting treatments.  An alternative feed-forward irrigation system has also been included for redundant control capability.  The payload utilizes a double Space Shuttle mid-deck locker, within which the Plant Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (PGBA) developed by BioServe Space Technologies Inc. (Boulder, CO) provides a controlled environment.  Inside, the Porous Tube Insert Module (PTIM), developed for the WONDER experiment by Bionetics Corp. at Kennedy Space Center, contains the experimental porous tube and substrate-based NDS hardware to control and monitor irrigation for the test species (Triticum aestivum cv. Apogee).  WONDER is in the final stages of development, and integration is under way of the PGBA and PTIM hardware.  Initial tests have been performed in the hardware to verify communications, hardware operations, and data acquisition and storage.  Results of hardware integration testing and science protocols are presented.

(Supported by NASA: NCC10-52)