Health & Fitness
Astronauts Weren't the Only Passengers Aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour
See what other organisms BESIDES the astronauts rode into the infinite universe on the Space Shuttle Endeavour.
Finally, the final launch of the historic Space Shuttle Endeavour occurred on May 16, 2011. A total of six male astronauts were launched into space to complete a 16-trip journey to the stars. But some uncommon passengers came along for the ride...
SQUID IN SPACE! Baby bobtail squid, along with five microorganisms strapped on their seat belts (humorous image no?) today for a wild ride. The microorganisms were placed on the ship by The Planetary Society's Living Interplanetary Experiment (LIFE), which basically sets out to discover if these organisms can handle some exposure in a little low-Earth orbit radiation.
So although squid, in the family of Cephalopods, which include octopus and cuttlefish, are one of my favorite animals, their trip in space is not solely about them. The bacteria which live inside their light organs, is the real star (pun intended!) of the show. In the past, "bad" bacteria like E.coli and Salmonella, showed that exposure in space inhibited the bacteria to function properly.When the bacteria returned to Earth, the Salmonella was three times more likely to kill their host as before (NASA).
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The bacteria living inside the squid is what we and scientists call a "good" bacteria. The bacteria works mutually with the squid, which means both organisms benefit from their relationship (hence a "mutualistic relationship"). We humans have bacteria mutually living inside our bodies, such as our intestines and stomach. If the results from the squid and their "good" bacteria show that being in space inhibits their relationship, then maybe our "good" bacteria in our bodies could be effected as well.
The squid will hatch 14 hours after the launch, then exposed to the bacteria for 28 hours, and finally end their life by being killed and fixed solid to be brought back to a lab on Earth. No, the astronauts weren't going to enjoy some calamari in space after the experiement was completed :P Hopefully we get good results from the experiment!
