Space Bears: Lab-experience with Tardigrades | Teach with space B10

In this set of experimental activities, students will investigate the survival abilities of tardigrades also known as water bears. They will explore how they can collect water bears and which extreme conditions they can simulate in the lab. They will expose collected tardigrades to these extreme conditions and come to a conclusion about which environments they can survive in. The aim of this resource is to test tardigrades’ resilience to extreme environmental conditions and link their survival ability to the space environment. Before beginning this activity, we suggest the completion of the activity Could life survive in alien environments?, which provides an introduction to life in extreme environments.

Learning objectives:

• Learning about tardigrades and the extreme conditions they can survive in.

• Learning about cryptobiosis and how this helps tardigrades survive.

• Investigating the effects of changing a variable in a system.

• Carrying out experiments appropriately, having due regard for the correct manipulation of apparatus, the accuracy of measurements and health and safety considerations.

• Evaluating methods and suggesting possible improvements and further investigations.

This classroom resource is part of a set of resources developed by ESA’s Education Office in collaboration with ESEROs to support the Moon Camp project.