Tardigrades In Space Cheyanne Jeffrey & Vicki-Ann Aman Co-Principal Investigators

What Are They?  Microscopic organisms  Can be found anywhere on Earth (soil, water, mold, lichen)

How much can they withstand?  Temperatures as low as -200 °C and as high as 151 °C  Freezing and/or thawing processes  Lack of oxygen  Lack of water  Levels of X-ray radiation 1000x the lethal human dose;  Boiling alcohol  Low pressure of a vacuum  High pressure (up to 6x the pressure of the deepest part of the ocean)

Cryptobiosis  “A temporary state where an organism’s metabolic activities come to a reversible standstill.” In Other Words………….

Experiment: Live and Rehydrated Water Bears Vs. Microgravity  Question: Is there a structural and behavioral difference when the tardigrades are in microgravity?

Hay Infusion Media with wheat grains and Spirogyra algae flamentous Live Water Bears in Water with Spirogyra algae Water Bears in Crypto Biotic Form Around 25

The Results Are In! Space Rehydrated Water Bears -No signs of life -Strong odor -Cloudy-Exoskeletons -Lack of algae -Yellowish color -Ph level 8 Earth’s Rehydrated Water Bears -Strong odor -Cloudy -Identified less that 4 water bears -Lack of algae -Ph level 8

The Results Are In! Space’s Live Water Bears -Exoskeletons-Rotifers -Lack of algae Earth’s Live Water Bears -Ph level 7 (normal) -Same odor as rehydrated experiment -Lack of algae -Making it difficult to see -Identified less than three water bears

Conclusion  What happened to the water bears?  Clues:  Lack of algae  Type of living environment ? ? ? ? ?

Acknowledgements  Financial Support:  Rochester Area Community Foundation  Asia Society International Studies Schools Network  Other Support:  Rochester Early College International High School  Rochester City School District  Ward’s Science (samples)  University of Rochester (microscope)