By Ikugbadi Oluwasegun
Nigeria’s National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) is participating in NASA’s Crew-11 Mission, set to launch from the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The mission will carry the World Seeds Payload, a groundbreaking agricultural experiment led by Jaguar Space with contributions from 11 countries, including Nigeria.
Nigeria’s contribution includes six indigenous crop seeds—okra, cowpea, Guinea corn (sorghum), amaranth, maize, and melon—chosen for their nutritional and agricultural value. These seeds will be studied aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to examine their behavior in microgravity and advance research on climate resilience, food security, and future space farming.
Following a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between NASRDA and Jaguar Space, the seeds were delivered to the United States, marking the agency’s first biological payload aboard a crewed NASA mission.
This milestone highlights NASRDA’s commitment to space-driven solutions for sustainable development and underscores the role of emerging space nations like Nigeria in shaping global scientific progress.
