Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

NASA Sent Several Mice Into Space To Analyze Their Behavior In Microgravity—And The Mice Actually Had A Blast

NASA Sent Several Mice Into Space To Analyze Their Behavior In Microgravity—And The Mice Actually Had A Blast
NASA Video/YouTube

Mice are the often unsung heroes of humans' scientific research. We use them as a proxy for our own species when researching how things might affect humans.

Obviously, we aren't mice, but their bodies are similar enough that they can tell us a lot about the safety of different medications or situations.


Mice also live shorter lives than humans, so they are excellent for testing the long-term effects of microgravity—like that experienced during prolonged space travel.

Humanity is getting closer and closer to taking a trip to Mars but, before we can make that idea a reality, we need to learn how being weightless for the amount of time it takes to get there will do to the astronauts that take the trip.

Rodent Research in Microgravitywww.youtube.com

In order to study how mice react to the microgravity of space, NASA designed a special enclosure to hold and observe mice on the International Space Station (ISS).

Called the NASA Rodent Research Hardware System, the enclosure had enough room for the mice to move around freely.

A researcher from NASA's Ames Research Center, located in Silicon Valley, talked about the enclosure

Studying Behavior in Space Shows Mice Adapt to Microgravitywww.youtube.com

Surprisingly, the mice didn't seem to mind being in space at all!

They did all of the same things that the control group of mice who stayed here on Earth did: grooming, eating, and interacting with the other mice in the enclosure (including adorable snuggle huddles—mice are very social animals).

They also did some things that the earthbound mice didn't, mostly because they couldn't. The space mice rapidly adjusted to the microgravity quickly, and some of the younger mice began doing what scientists called "race tracking."

They would run laps around the walls of the cage, eventually in groups!

Scientists aren't sure of the reason for these mousy jogging clubs, but they could be do to a few different factors.

It might be because the mice enjoy the physical exercise itself, like many human runners, or the motion helped stimulate the mice's sense of balance.

There is also the possibility that it is a stress response, but scientists think this is the least likely possibility. The mice were in perfect health, and didn't show any other abnormal behaviors.

Ronca commented on the importance of mouse research and the success of this initial study.

"Our behavioral study shows that the NASA Rodent Hardware System provides the capability to conduct meaningful long-duration biological research studies on the International Space Station."
"Experiments conducted in the habitat can focus on how mouse physiology responds to the spaceflight environment during extended missions and on similarities in response to astronaut crew."

Twitter users were excited by the study's results.




NASA is sending up another group of mice with the next cargo shipment to the ISS today!



If we really plan to make it to Mars, or even farther planets, these studies of the effects of being in space are vital. The ISS is too small to conduct a large-scale study on humans, and a sufficient number of samples are vital to understanding whether a reaction is a species-wide one or just an individual one.

These mouse studies are the first step in understanding the effects of space on bodies that are designed to exist with significantly more gravity.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Barack Obama
Scott Olson/Getty Images

Obama Offers Iconic Reaction After He Accidentally Photobombed A Family's Photos In DC

If you try to take nice pictures in a scenic location, there will likely be people wandering through the background of your photos, because everyone else will also be enjoying the scenery.

In most cases, people try to time the shots between passersby or edit them out afterwards, but after a photoshoot in Washington D.C., one family will definitely not be editing out the accidental guest walking among the cherry blossoms and the Washington Monument.

Keep ReadingShow less
children sitting on floor in classroom
CDC on Unsplash

Historical 'Facts' People Learned In School That Are Actually Not True

The phrase "history is written by the victors" is a common saying. It's often attributed to Winston Churchill, although there's no proof he said those exact words.

It points out that those who win conflicts shape how those events are remembered, recorded, and taught to future generations, leading to biased historical accounts and warped perceptions.

Keep ReadingShow less

Modern 'Conveniences' That Actually Make Life Harder

Making life simpler...

That is always the goal, right?

Keep ReadingShow less
Person holding cigarette
Luiz Rogério Nunes/Unsplash

One Night Stands That Turned Into A Total Nightmare

Ahh, the trials and tribulations of dating life.

On the one hand, it could be exciting and very promising. On the other hand, it could be a total disaster.

Keep ReadingShow less
Person's eyes glowing in the sunlight
Photo by Marina Vitale on Unsplash

People Who Clinically Died And Came Back To Life Share Their Experiences

We've all heard the questions about what happens when we die, whether there is life after death, and whether we really will walk through a tunnel of white light or not to get there.

But people who have had a near-death experience, in that they were declared clinically dead and were then resuscitated, might have the answers we're looking for, and their answers are quite peaceful.

Keep ReadingShow less