The Travelers: How Moon Trees Hide Among Us

<p>In 1971, a red-headed, tree-loving astronaut named Stu ‘Smokey’ Roosa was asked to take something to the moon with him. Of all things, he chose to take a canister of 500 tree seeds. After orbiting the moon 34 times, the seeds made it back to Earth. NASA decided to plant the seeds all across the country and then… everyone forgot about them. Until one day, a third grader from Indiana stumbled on a tree with a strange plaque: "Moon Tree." This discovery set off a cascading search for all the trees that visited the moon across the United States. Science writer, and our very own factchecker, <a href="https://www.nataliemiddleton.org/">Natalie Middleton</a> tells us the tale.</p><p>We’re holding a Moon Tree contest! Send us a drawing of what you imagine a Moon Tree to look like. Submit <a href="https://forms.gle/QAutKeByV1ELWxrs8">here</a>.</p><p>If you happen to find a Moon Tree and visit it, email us pictures of you at terrestrials@wnyc.org! We’d love to feature you on our <a href="http...