Seeds of Australia's national floral emblem, the Golden Wattle, will be launched into space in October on a Space X flight as part of an education activity coordinated by the One Giant Leap Australia Foundation.
The seeds are from the Australian Tree Seed Centre at Australia's national science agency, CSIRO, which is a unique resource containing representative seeds of Australian tree species.
"We collected these Golden Wattle seeds from a wild population in Victoria," says director David Bush.
"We hold seeds representing almost all Australian tree species, which we supply for forestry and conservation projects. We also carry out research such as field trials to help conserve important species and develop new industries."
After spending time on the International Space Station, the Golden Wattle seeds will be returned to Australia, where they will be planted by school students.
This news was first announced in this media release: One giant leap for Aussie Golden Wattle.
