Sea Plankton on Space Station?
The space station cosmonauts have allegedly discovered traces of sea plankton and other microscopic organisms that live on the outside of the station, exposed to the vacuum of space, according to an official from the space station news quoting Vladimir Soloviev.
However, NASA has not confirmed the reports. "As far as we are concerned, we have not heard the official reports of our colleagues have found that Roscosmos sea plankton," said NASA spokesman Dan Huot. Russia's Roscosmos Federal Space Agency.
the result of a long-term study carried out using specialized by the Russians in the station equipment, according to the news agency.
Although the astronauts a taste outside the space station and a window in one of the modules of the week, which are not necessarily looking for traces of microbes, according to NASA.
"I do not know where every word sea plankton just know," said Huot Space.com. "The Russians take samples from one of the windows in the Russian segment, and what they are really looking for is residue that can accumulate in visually sensitive areas such as windows and only the hull itself elements that set each time for things like fire thrusters increases again. This samples are taken to. plankton do not know where all of the speech comes from the sea. "
Plankton may, if confirmed, could be a contaminant released into space with space station module, said NASA scientist Lynn Rothschild.
Previous studies have shown that microorganisms can survive in space.
For example, tardigrades - microscopic invertebrates found throughout the world - can dehydrate and fall into a hibernation that allows them to survive in space, Rothschild said. Tardigrades (also called "water bears") are part of a disposal group classified as "extremophiles" - organisms that can survive even in the harshest environments.
"Note that there is a long history of the United States and European missions to demonstrate that microbes can survive in low Earth orbit for long periods of time," Rothschild told Space.com via email.
The researchers also discovered microbes in the upper atmosphere of the Earth. In 2013, scientists reported that they had found a large number of different types of microorganisms in the atmosphere at 10.5 miles (16.8 kilometers) above the planet's surface, according to the space. com sister site Live Science.
Bacterial life was even found 24.8 miles (40 kilometers) into the atmosphere, according to a 2013 interview with Tina Santl Temkiv, an environmental chemist at the University of Aarhus in Denmark, the sister site of Space. com Live Science.
NASA officials keep an eye on the growth of bacteria inside the spacecraft. Biofilms - colonies of bacteria - are growing within the International Space Station, and scientists are trying to understand how the microgravity environment affects their growth. Astronauts grew bad bacteria in the urine during a flight of space shuttle Atlantis from NASA and strangely found growing in biofilms compared to the same crop species on Earth.
"The unique aspect and structure of P. aeruginosa biofilms formed in microgravity suggests that nature is not able to adapt to terrestrial environments in ways that deserve further studies, including studies on long-term growth and adaptation to a low gravity environment "Cynthia Collins, who led the study, said in a NASA statement 2013" Before you start sending astronauts to Mars or engage in other tasks of long duration space flight, which should be as sure as possible that we have eliminated or significantly reduced the risk of biofilms against human crew and their equipment "
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