Sunflower science

Using materials science to probe biological systems

Dr Peter MORGAN & Dr Jeff SARGENT

Wednesday 5 May 2021 at 19:00

Sunflower - source

Everybody knows sunflowers follow the sun. Right ? We launched a UK-based Citizen Science project over four years ago to examine this heliotropism, to investigate the STEM that under-pins the sunflower’s ability to repeatedly track the sun across the sky and reset, every 24 hours.

Sun-tracking offers the sunflower a huge photosynthetic advantage over its competitors. It is already the 6^th most valuable cash crop throughout the world and the area under cultivation is set to expand, as it is used to manage climate change and tackle pollution.

Our experience is working at the cutting edge of aerospace research and developmemt. Using a raft of resources, expertise and techniques we have begun to gain an insight into another world.

The results are interpreted through the eyes of aerospace scientists and engineers.

To attend the Zoom meeting