Overview
- Don Pettit said the viral purple, tentacled object in his ISS photo is a potato he grew and nicknamed Spudnik-1.
- He explained that in microgravity roots spread in all directions and plants grow much slower than on Earth.
- The potato was anchored with a spot of hook Velcro inside an improvised grow light terrarium aboard the station.
- The image, taken during Expedition 72 from September 23, 2024 to April 18, 2025, drew jokes and alarm online, with users calling it an "alien egg" and urging him to "kill it with fire."
- NASA and news reports placed the moment in the wider push to grow safe, nutritious crops in space, noting potatoes’ high edible yield and recent ISS veggie trials such as lettuce and dwarf tomatoes.