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Tardigrades Can Survive Almost Anything, and Now We Know How
Water bear. Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of a water bear (Paramacrobiotus craterlaki) in moss. Water bears (or tardigrades) are tiny invertebrates that live in aquatic and semi-aquatic habitats such as lichen and damp moss. Paramacrobiotus craterlaki is a carnivorous species that feeds on nematodes and rotifers. Water bears are found throughout the world, including regions of extreme temperature, such as hot springs, and extreme pressure, such as deep underwater. They can also survive the high levels of radiation and vacuum of space. Magnification: x330 when printed at 10 centimetres wide.

DIGEST: [Gizmodo, Nature News]

Tardigrades, or water bears, are tough little creatures. They’re only half a millimeter long fully-grown, but they can live through almost anything: temperatures as low as -458 degrees Fahrenheit or as high as 300 degrees, pressures six times greater than those in the deepest ocean trenches, extraordinary amounts of radiation, even the vacuum of space. Last month, researchers in Japan published an analysis of the entire genome of one of the most resilient tardigrade species.

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