FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 23, 2008
CONTACT: Matt Mackowiak
Sen. Hutchison Hosts Signing of Agreement between NASA and USDA
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Texas’ senior senator and a member of the Senate Space Subcommittee, today hosted National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator Michael Griffin and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Ed Schafer for the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to enable the USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) to conduct plant and animal related research on the International Space Station (ISS).
The MOU between NASA and USDA is the second of such agreements. The first MOU was with the National Institutes of Health last September.
“I am very grateful to Administrator Michael Griffin for pursuing these Memoranda of Understanding, and I am pleased that the Secretary of Agriculture would use the technology of the space program to further our knowledge of how plants and biological organisms react in space with microgravity conditions,” said Sen. Hutchison at the signing.
As Chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Space, Sen. Hutchison sponsored the first NASA authorization bill in more than five years in 2005, which designated the ISS as a "National Laboratory." Her hope then was to more fully utilize the space station by opening it to other federal agencies, universities, and private sector research projects.
This MOU sets forth a framework of cooperation between the USDA/ARS and NASA that, among other things, encourages the exchange of ideas, information, and data arising from their respective research efforts, the development of agricultural research approaches and technologies for use on Earth and in space.
“I think this is the start of something that can be really important both in space and on the Earth, and I thank Senator Hutchison and Secretary Schafer for making it happen,” said NASA Administrator Michael Griffin.
“The images and the data collected by NASA satellites and aerial platform sensors have helped our agriculture research service scientists predict droughts, anticipate animal diseases, even guide farmers on precisely where to apply pesticides,” said Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer. “Thank you, Senator Hutchison, for your championship of the national space laboratories because we’re looking to build on this success with the new MOU between NASA and the USDA’s Agriculture Research Service.”
The research will improve the understanding of biological cellular mechanisms and may lead to creative new ways to improve American agriculture, protect the environment, and contribute to better human health. The agreement reflects NASA's ongoing efforts to develop the space station as a national laboratory, with the ability to serve a broad range of users.
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