[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 5]
[House]
[Pages 6388-6389]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                RECOGNITION OF THE COUDERSPORT MOON TREE

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, Apollo 14 launched on 
January 31, 1971, on its third trip to the Moon. Alan Shepard, Stuart 
Roosa, and Edgar Mitchell composed the Apollo's eighth manned mission 
to the lunar surface.
  Also on board were seeds from several common varieties of trees, part 
of a joint project with NASA and the U.S. Forest Service, known as the 
``Moon trees,'' to see whether spaceflight affected seeds' ability to 
sprout. The resulting seedlings were planted throughout the United 
States as a tribute to the Apollo program.
  One of the surviving trees is in Pennsylvania's Fifth District, in 
Coudersport, Potter County. The Coudersport Moon tree, a sycamore, is 
among dozens reported as missing by NASA, until a local resident became 
aware of NASA's attempts to track down the remaining national 
treasures.
  Today, Potter County's Moon tree is alive and well, and members of 
the Coudersport Area Lions Club have agreed to partner with the local 
government for a dedication ceremony

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that will bring long-overdue attention to our Moon tree.
  We collectively should recognize the importance of NASA's Apollo 
program, and I want to thank my constituents in Coudersport for working 
to ensure the Moon trees continue to serve as a living monument to our 
Nation's first visit to the Moon.

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