(CNN) It's one small step for man, one giant leap for chile peppers.

A team of scientists at NASA is working to launch the Española chile pepper into space. This would be the first fruiting plant the United States has grown and harvested at the International Space Station.

As NASA looks to send astronauts to Mars, it's crucial that the agency find plants and fruits that can travel with them.

According to Jacob Torres, a NASA scientist, depending on the alignment of the planets, the shortest trip to Mars would still take two years. Traditional prepackaged meals will not provide enough vitamins and nutrients for astronauts on the journey.

"They would be able to fill their stomachs up, but they wouldn't have the nutrients to do their work," Torres said.

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