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LaKesha's picture

LaKesha, Sharhea, Shanika, Andy

With new funds, we were able to use more advanced scientific tools to explore the plant life on planet Nearer. Instead of using the techniques of the previous scientists who went to planet Nearer, we came up with a new technique. We felt that height had to do more with growth of a plant and not something that made it different. We also do not know how plants grow on this new planet, especially if plants that are below 2ft. now will be much taller later. We determined whether or not a plant was different based on its texture and shape.

The first plant we found was a clover like plant. It had multiple round edges and with our new tools we were able to see white hairy objects on the surface of the plant. Our next plant was oval shaped, very soft to the touch and the top had jagged edges. There were two more plants that were similar in shape but different in texture. They were both spade like but with our new tools we were able to see that one of the plants was covered in fur. The next plant was very different in shape. It was much longer and took the form of a spoon. The edges were very jagged, while the actual plant was very smooth. These plants were all clustered together, almost as if they were the border of this new planet. Our next plant we found was spread out a lot around the planet. It had many different lengths, but we determined them to be the same plant. This plant was sword like, long and thin with a pointy tip.

After observing the shrub like plants, we moved on to the larger tree like plants. On this planet, we were able to find three different types of tree like plants. We differentiated them by their form and their trunk texture. The first tree had a very short trunk. At first, we assumed that this tree did not have a trunk. The tree did have a trunk but it was very hard to find due to the massive amount of shrubs that were covering the adjacent area. From the trunk, multiple branches shot up towards the sky looking like an upside down rake. It also had a very smooth texture. The second tree had a slightly rough texture and had a clearly visible trunk. It was also unique in that it was covered in moss. The last tree had an extremely coarse texture. It had thick scale like barks covering the trunk like a knight’s armor. It had an extremely high trunk and had branches only in the very top, where it was unreachable for us. With the new tools, we were able to witness a brown sticky liquid coming out between the barks of the tree.

Our new tool was very useful to identify new plants that the previous groups missed. We did not discredit their observations but more likely added to it. We think these plant like materials will continue to grow due to liquid substance resembling water found on the Planet Nearer.

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