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Pastimes : IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Volsi Mimir who wrote (469)	11/16/2005 4:51:24 PM
From: Volsi Mimir	Respond to of 480

Study: Lichen Don't Mind Space By Irene Mona Klotz, Discovery News Nov. 16, 2005 — Scientist have found the most complex organism to date that is able to survive direct exposure to space. The European Space Agency, which sponsored the research, said the findings bolstered the possibility that life was transferred between planets. Researchers from Spain flew samples of lichen, which are made of algal cells in a mat of fungus, on the outside of a Russian capsule that spent two weeks in orbit. The organisms survived the high levels of ultraviolet radiation, as well as the vacuum and extreme temperatures of space. In presenting the team's findings last week, Rosa de la Torre, from the Spanish Aerospace Research Establishment in Madrid, said post-flight analysis showed the lichens not only survived, but still had the ability to photosynthesize upon their return. Images taken by electron microscopes showed no cell damage. The experiment showed, "for the first time that complex organisms integrated by the association of seaweed and fungi, are able to resist the conditions of space without showing apparent damage," said Leopoldo Sancho, with Complutense University of Madrid. For the experiment, two species of lichen — Rhizocarpon geographicum and Xanthoria elegans — were sealed in a capsule and launched on Russian Soyuz rocket on May 31, 2005. Upon reaching orbit, the lid of the container holding the lichen was opened, exposing the samples to the space environment for 14 1/2 days. The lid was then closed to protect the samples while the capsule returned to Earth. "The lichens are probably some of the most resilient organisms that you can find," said astrobiologist Charles Cockell, with Britian's Open University, who is familiar with the Madrid team's work. Lichens have a mineral coating that apparently shielded the organisms from the ultraviolet radiation of space, said Rene Demets, who oversaw the project for ESA. On Earth, lichens are typically found on the surfaces of rocks. They are known to survive in extreme conditions, such as high on mountaintops. Previous studies have shown that simple organisms such as bacteria can survive in space and possibly even on the surface of Mars. Other organisms, such as plant seeds, have not fared as well. "They could resist the absolute emptiness and the extreme temperatures, but not the radiation," Sancho said. Follow-up ground and flight studies are planned for September 2007 to determine how long lichens might survive in space, and if they could survive re-entry forces if, for example, they were transported on a meteorite.