Fish were sent into space, this is what happened to them

Chinese researchers sent fish in their space station. The little vertebrates survived the first weeks… Find out what happened to them.

Since the beginnings of the conquest of space, many animals have been destroyed. sent into space: a dog, mice, flies and even jellyfish… hellip; This time, it is fish that China has decided to take over. to entrust to the inhabitants of the Tiangong space station. After several weeks spent in orbit, these astronauts like no other acclimatize in a surprising way to their new environment. their new habitat.

The four zebrafish have been living in their aquarium on the Chinese space station for over a month now. Researchers à The origins of the experiment entrusted them to the good care of the taïkonauts (name given to Chinese astronauts) who are in charge of feed them and change their water. Scientists will be able to observe à distance the behavior of their zebra guinea pigs from a distance using a camera. Unlike &agrav; what one might imagine, the little fish are very much alive and are slowly adapting to their environment. life on the space station. However, they seem slightly disoriented since some of them have started to wander around. move in unexpected ways, swim à upside down or even backwards turn on themselves. An unusual behavior in a natural environment but not so surprising given the conditions that prevail in weightlessness.

Life on a space station is very different from what we know on Earth, mainly on a space station. because of the absence of gravity, this force of attraction which keeps our two feet on the ground. In weightlessness, astronauts must relearn how to use their skills. move around, and the fish too! Although they live in water, they are also sensitive to water. microgravity. Chinese researchers are specifically interested in its effects on vertebrates because the results of this research could be useful for future space missions. They will provide a better understanding of how prolonged stays in space can affect organisms like us.

If the choice to send zebrafish as guinea pigs may seem surprising, it is in reality a question of of a species frequently used by researchers for their experiments. On the one hand, zebrafish have many genes in common with humans, which allows them to be used to better understand this that happens in our body. On the other hand, its reproduction cycle is very rapid and its eggs are transparent. It is therefore easy to observe the development of its embryos and study them. This is not the first time that zebrafish have been sent into orbit above our darkness. your since the ISS already has some welcomed by the past.