Water Bears

ISRO’s Voyager Tardigrades Project: ISRO is sending tardigrades (water bears) to space as part of the Axiom Mission 4, which will be India, Poland, and Hungary’s first government-sponsored human spaceflight in over 40 years.

Tardigrade Characteristics: These microscopic, eight-legged animals (0.1-0.5 mm) are found worldwide and are known for incredible resilience. They can survive extreme conditions, including the vacuum of space, and can endure without food or water for years.

Survival Mechanism – Cryptobiosis: Tardigrades enter a hibernation-like state called cryptobiosis by curling into a “tun”. This involves retracting their legs and head and shutting down body processes. They resume normal activity when conditions improve.

Why Space Exploration: Tardigrades are the only known animals capable of surviving the vacuum of space.

ISRO’s Research Focus: The ISRO project will study the revival, survival, and reproduction of tardigrades in space. This includes counting eggs laid and hatched and comparing gene expression patterns of spaceflown versus ground control populations.

Scientific Goals: The research aims to understand the molecular mechanisms of tardigrade resilience to extreme environments. This knowledge could inform future space exploration and biotechnology applications.

Significance: The study of tardigrades in space has the potential to advance the understanding of life’s limits and could provide insights into survival mechanisms in extreme environments.