Tardigrades
Tiny creatures called tardigrades about 1 mm long. In 2007, thousands of tardigrades were attached to a satellite and blasted into space. After the satellite had returned to Earth, scientists found that many of them were survived. Some of the females had even laid eggs in space, and the newly hatched ones were healthy and safe.
Tardigrades can actually
tolerate ice forming
within their cells
It seems tardigrades can actually tolerate ice forming within their cells. Either they can protect themselves from the damage caused by ice crystals, or they can repair it.
Tardigrades are the toughest animals on Earth. What would it take to kill them all? In the end, there will be tardigrades. If a cataclysm wipes out most of life on the planet — including humans — it's likely that tardigrades will survive.
How Do they Survive Space Radiation?
Space is deadly, and not just because of the vacuum. Outside our protective atmosphere there is killer radiation caused by distant supernovae, our sun, and other sources. Space radiation comes in the form of harmful charged particles that can imbed in the body of animals, ripping apart molecules and damaging DNA faster than it can be repaired.
The reason that tardigrades would have evolved to survive high radiation doses is a mystery, too. However, Miller points to a leading theory: Perhaps tardigrades evolved to be swept up by the wind and survive in the earth's atmosphere
