ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

Home → Environment → Animals

Rodents race around cage in NASA microgravity experiment

That looks like a lot of fun!

Tibi PuiubyTibi Puiu
April 16, 2019
in Animals, News, Space
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterSubmit to Reddit

Humanity dreams of one-day becoming an interstellar species. But before that happens many challenges need to be addressed. Studies have shown that long-stretches of exposure to space can have important consequences for the health of astronauts. For instance, astronauts stationed aboard the International Space Station (ISS) have reported muscle and bone loss, poorer vision, DNA and brain structure alteration, and other effects. In order to better understand how space affects basic biology, NASA has performed over a dozen experiments with mice on the ISS since 2014. The most recent findings suggest that rodents are well accustomed to life in microgravity — and have even learned to do some nifty tricks.

Rodent astronauts

A small group of mice spent 37 days in microgravity — which is equivalent to a long-duration mission (18 months) given a rodent’s lifespan — inside NASA’s Rodent Hardware System, which is basically a high-tech cage. The rodent space habitat was specially designed to accommodate mice in groups, in order to reduce stress and better record the motions of the animals. Unlike previous space habitats, NASA’s most recent version also included grates on its wall which the rodents could grab onto.

NASA scientists focused on observing the behavior of the rodents, looking for anything peculiar. When compared to mice that stayed on Earth, the space mice were remarkably similar. The mice behaved as they normally would: feeding, grooming their fur, huddling together, and interacting with their peers. By the end of the study, space mice weighed about the same as their Earth counterparts and their fur was in excellent condition, both signs of good health.

NASA’s Rodent Habitat module with both access doors open.
Credits: NASA/Dominic Hart.

The rodents aboard the ISS quickly adapted to their environment, anchoring themselves to the habitat walls with their hindlimbs or tails and stretching out their bodies. The same pose is commonly employed by mice on Earth, which stand up on their back legs to explore their surroundings.

“Behavior is a remarkable representation of the biology of the whole organism,” said April Ronca, a researcher at NASA’s Ames Research Center and lead author of the study published in the journal Scientific Reports. “It informs us about overall health and brain function.”

Space mice also exhibited some remarkable, never-before-seen behavior. The experiments included both younger and older mice, and it seems like the younger mice would sometimes run laps around the cage, an activity which NASA scientists have called “race-tracking”.

Researchers aren’t sure what spurred this behavior, although some reasons may be for physical exercise, as a response to stress, or for stimulation of the body’s balance system which is thrown off by microgravity. Future experiments in space involving mice will now have to take into consideration the increased blood flow due to the extra activity.

RelatedPosts

Early asteroids in our solar system may have been giant mudballs, not rocks
SpaceX to make ISS trip in February 2012
SpaceX reveals plans for world’s most powerful rocket
NASA finds Mars’ magnetic field is 10 times stronger than expected

Far from feeling threatened or stressed, these mice seem to be enjoying living in space.

“Our approach yields a useful analog for better understanding human responses to spaceflight, providing the opportunity to assess how physical movement influences responses to microgravity,” the researchers concluded in their paper.

Tags: International Space Stationissmicenasarodent

Share19TweetShare
Tibi Puiu

Tibi Puiu

Tibi is a science journalist and co-founder of ZME Science. He writes mainly about emerging tech, physics, climate, and space. In his spare time, Tibi likes to make weird music on his computer and groom felines. He has a B.Sc in mechanical engineering and an M.Sc in renewable energy systems.

Related Posts

Mind & Brain

The Eyes Really Are the Window to the Mind and This Study Proves It

byTudor Tarita
3 weeks ago
Future

NASA Captured a Supersonic Jet Breaking the Sound Barrier and the Image Is Unreal

byTibi Puiu
2 months ago
News

NASA’s Curiosity Rover Spotted Driving Across Mars From Space for the First Time

byTibi Puiu
2 months ago
Biology

Yeast in Space? Scientists Just Launched a Tiny Lab to See If We Can Create Food in Orbit

byMihai Andrei
2 months ago

Recent news

Your nails could be a sign of whether a recession is coming or not

June 19, 2025

Coffee Could Help You Live Longer — But Only If You Have it Black

June 19, 2025

These Moths in Australia Use the Milky Way as a GPS to Fly 1,000 Kilometers

June 18, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • How we review products
  • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Science News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Space
  • Future
  • Features
    • Natural Sciences
    • Physics
      • Matter and Energy
      • Quantum Mechanics
      • Thermodynamics
    • Chemistry
      • Periodic Table
      • Applied Chemistry
      • Materials
      • Physical Chemistry
    • Biology
      • Anatomy
      • Biochemistry
      • Ecology
      • Genetics
      • Microbiology
      • Plants and Fungi
    • Geology and Paleontology
      • Planet Earth
      • Earth Dynamics
      • Rocks and Minerals
      • Volcanoes
      • Dinosaurs
      • Fossils
    • Animals
      • Mammals
      • Birds
      • Fish
      • Amphibians
      • Reptiles
      • Invertebrates
      • Pets
      • Conservation
      • Animal facts
    • Climate and Weather
      • Climate change
      • Weather and atmosphere
    • Health
      • Drugs
      • Diseases and Conditions
      • Human Body
      • Mind and Brain
      • Food and Nutrition
      • Wellness
    • History and Humanities
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • History
      • Economics
      • People
      • Sociology
    • Space & Astronomy
      • The Solar System
      • Sun
      • The Moon
      • Planets
      • Asteroids, meteors & comets
      • Astronomy
      • Astrophysics
      • Cosmology
      • Exoplanets & Alien Life
      • Spaceflight and Exploration
    • Technology
      • Computer Science & IT
      • Engineering
      • Inventions
      • Sustainability
      • Renewable Energy
      • Green Living
    • Culture
    • Resources
  • Videos
  • Reviews
  • About Us
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Editorial policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.