What To Know
- As soon as they arrived on board the station, the fish were disoriented, as explained by a article from the CGTN of May 19, 2024.
- Indeed, the objective is to keep them alive on board the station and build an ecosystem around themThe taikonauts are tasked with feeding the animals, monitoring them with cameras and collecting water at regular intervals.
- By the end of the experiment, science should know more about the effects of microgravity on vertebratesbut also on the consequences of radiation.
Several weeks after their arrival aboard the Chinese space station Tiangong, the four zebrafish are doing well. They have finally adapted to the microgravity environment after a rather difficult first few days.
Studying the evolution of an ecosystem made up of fish
Shenzhou 18 is the thirteenth Chinese manned space mission and the seventh to the Chinese Space Station. However, as part of this mission, four zebrafish made the trip on April 25, 2024, accompanied by a batch of submerged hornworts, aquatic plants without roots. The goal? To create a autonomous ecosystem and study its evolution under the effect of microgravity, but also radiation. As soon as they arrived on board the station, the fish were disoriented, as explained by a article from the CGTN of May 19, 2024. According to the taikonauts, the vertebrates swam in curious ways: in circles, backwards or even on their backs. This attitude suggested that the fish could not find their way in their space. Finally, everything returned to normal as they have now returned to a normal rhythm and seem to be doing well. As explained Universe Todaythe China National Space Administration (CNSA) did not select this species of fish by chance. It must be said that their reproductive cycle and development phase are rather short. Above all, their eggs are transparent, so it is easier to study their growth. Their genetic heritage also has many points in common with that of humans. In other words, some conclusions of this research could also apply to humans.
China’s Tiangong space station. Credits: CMSE
Microgravity and radiation
It should be noted that the mission does not foresee the return of the fish to Earth. Indeed, the objective is to keep them alive on board the station and build an ecosystem around themThe taikonauts are tasked with feeding the animals, monitoring them with cameras and collecting water at regular intervals. By the end of the experiment, science should know more about the effects of microgravity on vertebratesbut also on the consequences of radiation. However, it should be noted that other fish have already been sent into orbit for fairly similar work. This was the case in 2012 with the Japanese space agency (JAXA). As part of their study, the researchers used zebrafish and medakas, fish that live in rice fields. The project managers then noted a decreased bone density animals only ten days after their arrival; a phenomenon obviously already observed in humans.
