Houston, we have a podcast.

Welcome to the official podcast of the NASA Johnson Space Center, episode 197,

Water Bears in Space. I'm Gary Jordan, and I'll be your host today.

On this podcast, we bring in the experts, scientists, engineers, and astronauts all to let

you know what's going on in the world of human spaceflight.

Water bears are about to head to the International Space Station.

If you're not familiar with water bears, or tardigrades, they are super tiny animals

that are best known for their ability to survive in some of the harshest conditions,

extreme heat, extreme cold, bottom of the ocean near volcanoes, highly radioactive environments, and even

the vacuum of space.

Exactly how they survive in these conditions is something that Dr Thomas Boothby has been studying for years.

Thomas is an assistant professor at the University of Wyoming Department of Molecular Biology,

and he's taking his research to the International Space Station as the principal investigator for Cell Science 4,

which is, you guessed it, sending water bears to space to study how they adapt to microgravity.

I got a chance to chat with Thomas about Water Bears and this investigation that will be making

its way to the space station aboard the SpaceX Dragon on the upcoming CRS 22 mission.

So let's get right to it.

Enjoy. T-minus second, county. Mark.

It's not.

On Scum Mid Light, sir, the red.

Here she goes. Isn't we have a contest?

Dr Thomas Boothby, thanks for coming on Houston.

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