As part of the Ax-4 space mission, India is sending tiny creatures called tardigrades to the International Space Station (ISS). Tardigrades are also known as “water bears”—they’re super small, but super tough! They can survive without food, water, or air for a long time, and even in space!
The experiment, called Voyager Tardigrades, will study how these little creatures wake up from sleep (called dormancy), lay eggs, and grow in space. Scientists will count how many eggs hatch and compare the genes of space-born tardigrades with those that stayed on Earth.
But why study them in space? Because space is a very harsh place—there’s no gravity, strong radiation, and extreme conditions. If tardigrades can survive and grow up there, they can teach us how life might survive in space or on other planets.
This can also help scientists design new medicines or technologies to protect astronauts during long space journeys. And who knows? One day we might send humans to live on the Moon or Mars—and these tiny space explorers could help us get there!
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