GIRLS from a brownie pack from Falfield and Stone have become space biologists after growing seeds which have visited space.

The First Falfield and Stone Brownies are taking part in a nationwide science experiment to grow a handful of rocket seeds which have returned from a visit to the International Space Station in September.

The educational project launched by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) campaign for school gardening, and the UK Space Agency, involves up to 10,000 schools and groups growing a pack of 100 seeds from space, alongside 100 seeds that have not been to space, measuring the difference over seven weeks.

The twist however is that the brownies have no idea which seeds are which, at least until all results have been collected by the RHS and analysed by professional biostatisticians.

Brownie leader Jane Barber says: “We are very excited to be taking part in Rocket Science. This experiment is a fantastic way of teaching our brownies to think more scientifically and share their findings with the unit and all the other children involved.

“The out-of-this-world science experiment will enable the brownies to think more about how we could preserve human life on another planet in the future, what astronauts need to survive long-term missions in space and the difficulties surrounding growing fresh food in challenging climates.”

For more information, you can follow the project on Twitter through @RHSSchools or by searching the hashtag #RocketScience