Artemis I Moon Tree 23

This specimen tree before you is a Sweetgum, or Liquidambar styraciflua, but more importantly, it is the 23rd Artemis 1 Moon Tree. Selected from over 1,300 applicants, Hayes Arboretum was chosen by the NASA Office of STEM Engagement and the USDA Forest Service to be home to Moon Tree 23. This unique artifact started as just a seed that was rocketed into orbit around the moon. With roughly 1,000 seeds in total, this experiement included five different species of trees: the American Sycamore, Douglas Fir, Giant Sequoia, Loblolly Pine, and Sweetgum. These seeds were packaged in small, ravioli-like pockets and shot into space on November 16, 2022. After orbiting the moon, the packets of seeds completed their 25 and a half day journey, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean on December 11th, 2022. The Orion spacecraft filled with these packages of seeds flew father than any space craft made for humans has ever gone, almost 270,000 miles away from Earth. The seeds were then recovered by USDA Forest Service Scientists and planted in USDA Forest Service Facilities and Nurseries across the country. Our Sweetgum was planted and grown at the USDA Forest Service Charles E Bessey Nursery located near Halsey, Nebraska. The Artemis 1 Moon Tree Seedlings Initiative is a replication of the original 1971 Apollo 14 Moon Tree Mission where seeds from five different species of trees were sent on a manned rocket into orbit around the Moon. These seeds were also grown and distributed around the country and gifted to other nations as well. Hayes Arboretum is honored to be chosen by NASA and the USDA Forest Service to be home to one of these unique artifacts.